This book is devoted to practical C programming. C is currently the premier language for software developers. That's because it's widely distributed and standard. Newer languages are available, such as C++, but these are still evolving. C is still the language of choice for robust, portable programming.
This book emphasizes the skills you will need to do real-world programming. It teaches you not only the mechanics of the C language, but the entire life cycle of a C program as well (including the program's conception, design, code, methods, debugging, release, documentation, maintenance, and revision).
Good style is emphasized. To create a good program yo u must do more than just type in code. It is an art in which writing and programming skills blend themselves together to form a masterpiece. True art can be created. A well-written program not only functions correctly, but is simple and easy to understand. Comments allow the programmer to include descriptive text inside the program. When clearly written, a commented program is highly prized.
A program should be as simple as possible. A programmer should avoid clever tricks. This book stresses simple, practical rules. For example, there are 15 operator precedence rules in C. These can be simplified into two rules:
1. Multiply and divide come before add and subtract. 2. Put parentheses around everything else.
The publisher, O'Reilly and Associates There are lots of introductory C books, but this is the one that has the no-nonsense, practical approach that has made Nutshell Handbooks(R) famous. C programming is more than just getting the syntax right. Style and debugging also play a tremendous part in creating programs that run well and are easy to maintain. This new edition of Practical C Programming teaches you not only the mechanics of programming, but also how to create programs that are easy to read, debug, and maintain. It features more extensive examples, offers an introduction to graphical development environments, and describes Electronic Archaeology (the art of going through someone else's code). As in earlier editions, practical rules are still stressed. For example, there are fifteen precedence rules in C (&& comes before || comes before ?:). The practical programmer reduces these to two: multiplication and division come before addition and subtraction put parentheses around everything else. Topics covered: Good programming style C syntax: what to use and what not to use The programming environment, including integrated development kits The total programming process Floating point limitations Tricks and surprises Program examples conform to ANSI C. Covers several Windows compilers, as well as UNIX compilers.
