First released in 1993 as part of Visual Studio, Visual C++ (often abbreviated MSVC) gave developers the power to build high-performance, system-level applications with direct access to the Windows API. Games, drivers, CAD software, browsers — so much of the classic Windows ecosystem was written in MSVC.

💡 Who else remembers waiting 45 minutes to install Visual C++ 6.0 from 6 CDs? Or wrestling with DLL hell and afxres.h ?

👾 What's your fondest (or most frustrating) memory of Visual C++?

Visual C++ didn't just compile code — it shaped how Windows developers thought about performance, tooling, and the OS itself. And it's still alive, shipping with every modern Visual Studio release.

For nearly three decades, was more than just an IDE — it was the backbone of native Windows development. 🖥️