Borland C++ is really great at protecting your computer because it has advanced features like protection modes and comes with an automatic debugger, which saves you a lot of time and worry. I personally prefer GCC, but that's just me. Borland C++ is a compiler that is free, once you register into the Borland community, and supports Windows and MS-DOS. Plus, it runs on linux too, so you could make that transition even easier on yourself. However, if you're looking for something a bit more lightweight, CodeBlocks is also rather good, and has the added benefit of being able to use basically any compiler you have installed (including several forms of GCC and the Microsoft Compiler that comes with Visual Studio) and being able to open project files fro other IDEs. Visual Studio is the Microsoft version, and although it has its issues, it is an excellent IDE for working with the code.
The C text editor also supports taking input from the user and. Answer (1 of 47): Very good answers, I’ll just add one to them that needs to be mentioned: Qt Creator: This IDE really takes the interface and ideas from Microsoft Visual C++ to the next level, if you want to use a graphical IDE. Dev-C++ is a free integrated development program for Windows that helps reduce the manual work required when programming.
If you're looking for an IDE, I have two recommendations. The user friendly C online compiler that allows you to Write C code and run it online.
That will compile your programs natively for windows, using a standard library, etc. I recommend that you use the MinGW distribution of GCC. Its probably best that you use it until you become more comfortable with something else. Its a standards compliant c/c++ compiler, and I use it for windows programs on a daily basis. GCC is not technically a linux specific compiler.