C Tutorial.pdf

C Language Tutorial

C L ANGUAGE T UTORIAL

This tutorial teaches the entire C programming language. It is composed of 13 chapters which should be

studied in order since topics are introduced in a logical order and build upon topics introduced in

previous chapters. It is to the students benefit to download the source code for the example programs,

then compile and execute each program as it is studied. The diligent student will modify the example

program in some way, then recompile and execute it to see if he understands the material studied for that

program. This will provide the student with valuable experience using his compiler.

The recommended method of study is to print the text for one or two chapters, download the example

programs, and study the material by loading the example programs in the compiler's editor for viewing.

Following successful completion of each chapter, additional chapters can be downloaded as progress is

made.

Version 2.8 - Sept 8, 1996 - (Files restructured on March 15, 1997)

This tutorial is distributed as shareware which means that you do not have to pay to use it. However, the

author spent a good deal of time and financial resources to develop this tutorial and requests that you

share in the financial burden in a very small way, but only if you felt the tutorial was valuable to you as

an aid in learning to program in C. If you wish to remit a small payment to the author, full instructions

for doing so will be given by clicking the link below. If you do not wish to remit any payment, please

feel free to use the tutorial anyway. In either case, I hope you find programming in C to be rewarding and

profitable. I personally think it is an excellent language.

How to Remit Payment For this Tutorial!

Introduction - What is C and why study it?

Chapter 1 - Getting Started

Chapter 2 - Program Structure

Chapter 3 - Program Control

Chapter 4 - Assignment & Logical Compare

Chapter 5 - Functions, Variables, & Prototyping

Chapter 6 - The C Preprocessor

Chapter 7 - Strings and Arrays

Chapter 8 - Pointers

Chapter 9 - Standard Input/Output

Chapter 10 - File Input/Output

Chapter 11 - Structures

Chapter 12 - Dynamic Allocation

Chapter 13 - Character and Bit Manipulation

Download the HTML Documentation - (chtm.zip) Download all of the above documents in one packed

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C Language Tutorial

file. This file (about 155k) contains the 14 files listed above (plus the diagrams) which can be

downloaded and unpacked for use locally. The content of this file is identical to the content of the above

files. There are no executable files in this group of files.

Download the Source Code - (csrc.zip) Download all example programs. This file (about 41k) contains

79 source files which are all explained in the 13 chapters of text. There are no executable files in this

group of files.

Download the Answers to Exercises - (cans.zip) Download the authors answers to all of the programming

exercises. This file (about 11k) contains 27 source files. There are no executable files in this group of

files.

Download the pkunzip executable - (pkunzip.exe) Download pkunzip.exe version 2.04 to unzip the

source code. This executable is pre-registered for your use in unzipping any Coronado Enterprises

tutorial files. It will unpack and generate the zipped files in the current directory and all will be ASCII

source code files. To unzip the source code files, execute the following DOS command;

pkunzip csrc.zip

Or, to unzip the answers to programming exercises, execute the following DOS command;

pkunzip cans.zip

Gordon Dodrill - dodrill@swcp.com - Please email any comments or suggestions.

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C Tutorial - Introduction

Introduction to the C Tutorial

C I S U SUALLY F IRST

The programming language C was originally developed by Dennis Ritchie of Bell Laboratories and was

designed to run on a PDP-11 with a UNIX operating system. Although it was originally intended to run

under UNIX, there has been a great interest in running it under the MS-DOS operating system on the

IBM PC and compatibles. It is an excellent language for this environment because of the simplicity of

expression, the compactness of the code, and the wide range of applicability. Also, due to the simplicity

and ease of writing a C compiler, it is usually the first high level language available on any new

computer, including microcomputers, minicomputers, and mainframes.

C is not the best beginning language because it is somewhat cryptic in nature. It allows the programmer a

wide range of operations from high level down to a very low level, approaching the level of assembly

language. There seems to be no limit to the flexibility available. One experienced C programmer made

the statement, "You can program anything in C", and the statement is well supported by my own

experience with the language. Along with the resulting freedom however, you take on a great deal of

responsibility because it is very easy to write a program that destroys itself due to the silly little errors

that a good Pascal compiler will flag and call a fatal error. In C, you are very much on your own as you

will soon find.

I ASSUME YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT C

In order to successfully complete this tutorial, you will not need any prior knowlede of the C

programming language. I will begin with the most basic concepts of C and take you up to the highest

level of C programming including the usually intimidating concepts of pointers, structures, and dynamic

allocation. To fully understand these concepts, it will take a good bit of time and work on your part

because they are not particularly easy to grasp, but they are very powerful tools. Enough said about that,

you will see their power when we get there, just don't allow yourself to worry about them yet.

Programming in C is a tremendous asset in those areas where you may want to use Assembly Language

but would rather keep it a "simple to write" and "easy to maintain" program. It has been said that a

program written in C will pay a premium of a 20 to 50% increase in runtime because no high level

language is as compact or as fast as Assembly Language. However, the time saved in coding can be

tremendous, making it the most desirable language for many programming chores. In addition, since

most programs spend 90 percent of their operating time in only 10 percent or less of the code, it is

possible to write a program in C, then rewrite a small portion of the code in Assembly Language and

approach the execution speed of the same program if it were written entirely in Assembly Language.

Even though the C language enjoys a good record when programs are transported from one

implementation to another, there are differences in compilers that you will find anytime you try to use

another compiler. Most of the differences become apparent when you use nonstandard extensions such as

calls to the DOS BIOS when using MS-DOS, but even these differences can be minimized by careful

choice of programming constructs.

Throughout this tutorial, every attempt will be made to indicate to you what constructs are available in

every C compiler because they are part of the ANSI-C standard, the accepted standard of C

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C Tutorial - Introduction

programming.

WHAT IS THE ANSI-C STANDARD?

When it became evident that the C programming language was becoming a very popular language

available on a wide range of computers, a group of concerned individuals met to propose a standard set

of rules for the use of the C programming language. The group represented all sectors of the software

industry and after many meetings, and many preliminary drafts, they finally wrote an acceptable standard

for the C language. It has been accepted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and by the

International Standards Organization (ISO). It is not forced upon any group or user, but since it is so

widely accepted, it would be economic suicide for any compiler writer to refuse to conform to the

standard.

YOU MAY NEED A LITTLE HELP

Modern C compilers are very capable systems, but due to the tremendous versatility of a C compiler, it

could be very difficult for you to learn how to use it effectively. If you are a complete novice to

programming, you will probably find the installation instructions somewhat confusing. You may be able

to find a colleague or friend that is knowledgeable about computers to aid you in setting up your

compiler for initial use.

This tutorial cannot cover all aspects of programming in C, simply because there is too much to cover,

but it will instruct you in all you need for the majority of your programming in C, and it will introduce

essentially all of the C language. You will receive instruction in all of the programming constructs in C,

but what must be omitted are methods of programming, since these can only be learned by experience.

More importantly, it will teach you the vocabulary of C so that you can go on to more advanced

techniques using the programming language C. A diligent effort on your part to study the material

presented in this tutorial will result in a solid base of knowledge of the C programming language. You

will then be able to intelligently read technical articles or other textbooks on C and greatly expand your

knowledge of this modern and very popular programming language.

HOW TO USE THIS TUTORIAL

This tutorial is written in such a way that the student should sit before his computer and study each

example program by displaying it on the monitor and reading the text which corresponds to that program.

Following his study of each program, he should then compile and execute it and observe the results of

execution with his compiler. This enables the student to gain experience using his compiler while he is

learning the C programming language. It is strongly recommended that the student study each example

program in the given sequence then write the programs suggested at the end of each chapter in order to

gain experience in writing C programs.

THIS IS WRITTEN PRIMARILY FOR MS-DOS

This tutorial is written primarily for use on an IBM-PC or compatible computer but can be used with any

ANSI standard compiler since it conforms so closely to the ANSI standard. In fact, a computer is not

even required to study this material since the result of execution of each example program is given in

comments at the end of each program.

RECOMMENDED READING AND REFERENCE MATERIAL

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C Tutorial - Introduction

"The C Programming Language - Second Edition", Brian W. Kernigan & Dennis M. Ritchie, Prentice

Hall, 1988

This is the definitive text of the C programming language and is required reading for every serious C

programmer. Although the first edition was terse and difficult to read, the second edition is easier to read

and extremely useful as both a learning resource and a reference guide.

Any ANSI-C textbook

Each student should posess a copy of a book that includes a definition of the entire ANSI-C specification

and library. Go to a good bookstore and browse for one.

Return to Table of Contents

Advance to Chapter 1

Gordon Dodrill - dodrill@swcp.com - Please email any comments or suggestions.

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