18 — Project Ideas

Core Idea

A serious project beats passive study. Pick one project that forces you to use modern C++ features, tooling, debugging, and domain concepts.

Beginner Recovery Projects

1. Command-Line Todo App

Practice:

• STL containers,
• file I/O,
• classes,
• serialization,
• testing.

Stretch:

• JSON persistence,
• search/filter,
• dates with chrono.

2. Log Parser

Practice:

• string processing,
• string_view,
• maps,
• algorithms,
• performance measurement.

Stretch:

• parse large files,
• benchmark alternatives,
• multithreaded processing.

Intermediate Projects

3. TCP Chat Server

Practice:

• sockets,
• concurrency,
• RAII wrappers for file descriptors,
• error handling.

Stretch:

• rooms,
• authentication,
• async/event loop.

4. Key-Value Store

Practice:

• data structures,
• file persistence,
• APIs,
• tests,
• performance.

Stretch:

• write-ahead log,
• compaction,
• TCP protocol.

5. 2D Physics Simulation

Practice:

• value types,
• vectors/math,
• game loop,
• performance.

Stretch:

• collision detection,
• visualization,
• spatial partitioning.

Strong Portfolio Projects

6. Order Book Simulator

Practice:

• performance,
• data structures,
• cache-friendly design,
• testing,
• benchmarking.

Stretch:

• market data replay,
• latency measurements,
• Python visualization.

7. Robot Path Planner

Practice:

• algorithms,
• simulation,
• geometry,
• C++/Python split.

Stretch:

• A*, RRT,
• ROS 2 integration,
• visualization.

8. Embedded Sensor Logger

Practice:

• C/C++,
• serial protocols,
• constrained memory,
• real hardware.

Stretch:

• dashboard,
• network upload,
• power optimization.

9. Python Extension in C++

Practice:

• C++ library design,
• Python interop,
• performance,
• packaging.

Stretch:

• expose a fast parser or numerical routine to Python.

10. Safe File Format Parser

Practice:

• binary parsing,
• memory safety,
• fuzzing,
• error handling.

Stretch:

• fuzz with AFL/libFuzzer,
• sanitize builds,
• security writeup.

Project Rules

For any project, include:

• README.md,
• CMake build,
• tests,
• sanitizer instructions,
• at least one benchmark or demo,
• clear explanation of design trade-offs.

Best First Serious Project

If undecided, build a multithreaded TCP server or a key-value store. Both teach systems, ownership, concurrency, tests, and performance.