I\'ve recently started to learn C++ and am completely confused with the choices of IDEs and compilers out there. I am competent with interpreted languages and like the simplicit
Firstly, are there any books or websites that teach C++ from this approach? (IDE-less)
Yes, definitely. Stroustrup's book has already been mentioned. For learning C++ I'd also recommend two other books: If you like thorough explanations and don't shy away from 1000 pages, look at Lippman et al. If you rather like a short introduction and don't fear a steep learning curve, look at Koenig/Moo. Both are excellent books. (BTW, a good place to look for good books has always been the book review section at the ACCU.)
As for which tool chain you want to use: If you rather have a standalone editor and invoke the compiler from the command line, you can do this with either GCC or VC. This approach has the advantage that it is more unlikely to lure you into using something proprietary (like C++/CLI). If you would like to try an IDE, VC Express is fine, once you're past setting up a new C++ project. Of course, the number of options you can tweak for a new project can be very overwhelming. But on the other hand you get things like an integrated debugger. Note that there are other integrated solutions, too. The most mature and prominent is probably eclipse.
Edit: If you don't mind spending a little money, look at Comeau. It's not free, but it's not expensive either and it's usually considered to be the most standard-conforming C++ compiler around and has excellent error messages. (You can test-drive it at the website.) Note that it emits C code, though. That means you have to have another compiler to create an executable program. But both GCC and VC Express will do, so there's no other cost. (Note that using VC you will get Dinkumware's std lib implementation, which is also considered to be a very good one.)