For expert programmers: How important is math in c++?

[MNelsonMCP]

I've spoke to several people regarding math and c++ and most of them tell me that it's not terribly important to be good with math when using c++ for programming. What are your thoughts on the subject? From what I've seen so far in what little coding I've done, math seems important, but not to the extent that I would have had to of taken calculus in high school.

What do you think? Any tips/advice?

[MNelsonMCP]

In my own opinion, it seems that logic, problem solving and figuring out the logistics of a program takes precedence. Not that math isn't important, it just seems that figuring out the syntax and when and where to use a particular command is quite important.

[Bazzy]

Math is quite important in computer science, but what specific programming fields require different math knowledge

[quirkyusername]

If you ever studied graphics programming the maths would blow your face off, overall it depends on what kind of programming you want to get into. What kind of programs do you see yourself creating in the future and if you have started studying c++ at college or university what course are you on?

[MNelsonMCP]

I've started learning c++ on my own, using several resources (online books, video tutorials, this website, etc). I see myself creating programs to manage data, transmit information over the internet, and working with databases. I don't foresee any kind of graphical coding going on in the near future. I'm looking to make a program for the medical field which stores a patients condition, notes on the patient, their picture, prescriptions, history - sort of like a more advanced form of electronic medical records. I'd also like their to be some web connectivity for users to share patient information, even have patients edit or send messages to their doctor via an online application.

For my needs, what types of programming would you guys suggest I look into? I've started with c++ because from my understanding it's a very versatile and seems to be quite popular among the programming world.

[Galik]

I think maths is a natural complement for programming. If you think about it, a program is a model of the real world or a real world process. Real world processes are often well described using math. So understanding the math can be a great help when designing software. Having said that, I am sure that math is not required for many common programming tasks. Although you will benefit from some level of basic competency with figures if you end up working on a pay-roll system or calculating business statistics, exchange rates, mortgages etc....

[retype]

I am in no way an expert, infact im a begginer. But for my 2cents i notice that algebra is a good basis to know. For your specific needs you might need to work with arrays and mabey x and y axises for an "user-friendly" interface. Besides your specifics, like Galik said ^, having math knowledge is always good when working in a programming field.

[Lv0f92yv]

I am also a beginner, but would like to point out that the level of mathematics one should have mastered is largely (if not envirely) dependant on what field the programmer works in, and what types of software they design. Mathematics and computer science are generally assumed to be closely related because there is a large chunk of the software industry that works in the science and mathematical fields, which inherently involve a lot of... Math.

CS/software engineering is a very large and diverse field - and I've found many soft. engineers who have little more than basic algebra under their belt.

In general, the more math you can have with a CS/CE degree, the better - if for no other reason than it opens more doors to different parts of industry.

[L E G I O N]

im in school for video game design and my teacher says you need to be a math/physics wiz if you wanna code game engines but if your programming games and using engines than you need to UNDERSTAND math but you dont need to be a mathematician

[Kyon]

quirkyusername wrote:

If you ever studied graphics programming the maths would blow your face off,

Only some basic vector math is required here.
Overall, it's useful to know what you are trying to simulate in your program. If it can be described as an object
defined in maths, you can use it like such (which simplifies things, in ANY case). Programming heavily relies on logic and requires you to be able to think on a strict low level (computer related stuff, logic related stuff) and on a higher level (maths). It's practically possible to do a lot without "hard" maths, yet when you understand a subject and can apply it to a situation to simplify problems or to increase performance, be sure to do so.