My c++ teacher was talking about the history of c++ in class (why he was doing it in an advanced c++ class I'll never know) so I did some reaserch (mostly cause I couldn't remember the names) and this post is a compilation of that and the lecture.

I'll start this one in the middle with C.

C was used by bell labs for some time, it was the definitive programming language that was used before C was B (a pun but that's kinda how the languages came about. And B was used only for a little while and B was derived from BCPL (Basic Computer Programming Language). The programmers liked B but they wanted some of the options that were taken out of BCPL back so instead of reinstating the options they took out of BCPL they stole the options from Algol and In 1971 Dennis Ritchie (who worked for Bell Labs) used that and C was born.

that was C Here's C++

In 1973 C was stabalized and became the definitive language. Bell Labs had been looking for a way to simulate trafic over their network and created a language called small talk which didn't last too long as an easyer to use language that could accomplish the same thing was developed by In Bjarne Stroustrup and in 1983 Bell Labs released C++ ( another pun). in 1989 ANSI established the standerds for C and C++.

And here's where the C++ derivitives come in

Java was released by Sun micrososystems in 1995 who wanted a portable programming language that could be used in embeded electronics.

J++ was released by microsoft (wanted to take a portable language and change it into well what J++ is) in 1997 but they got brickwalled in an ensuing legal battle that sun won.

in 2001 .net and C# where invented. .Net was a derivitive of J++ but was changed around enough so that they could call it a different language and avoid the legal fiasco of the J++ language.