Understanding compilers

In this section, you will learn what a compiler is and how to use it for cross-platform development. A compiler is a piece of software that transforms your program into machine code or low-level instructions that can be read and executed by a computer. These low-level machine instructions vary from platform to platform. You can compile Qt applications with different compilers such as the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC), or you can use a vendor-supplied one. In Qt Creator, you can find a compiler supported for a kit under the Kits tab, along with other essential tools for building an application on a particular platform such as Windows, Linux, or macOS. Not all supported compilers are provided with the Qt installer, but you can find the most widely used compilers automatically listed in the recommended kit. Qt may drop support for certain kit configurations or replace them with the latest version.

Currently, Qt supports the following compilers:

• GCC
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