C Programming
Hands-On Technology Transfer

Delivery Method

Seminar

Target Audience
Computer Industry Professionals

Summary
This hands on C programming course provides a comprehensive introduction to the ANSI C language, emphasizing portability and structured design

Description/Agenda

This hands on C programming course provides a comprehensive introduction to the ANSI C language, emphasizing portability and structured design. Students are introduced to all major language elements including fundamental data types, flow control, and standard function libraries. Thorough treatment is given to the topics of string and character manipulation, dynamic memory allocation, standard I/O, macro definition, and the C runtime library. The course explains the use of aggregate structures, unions, and pointers early on so the students can practice extensively in the hands on labs. Structured programming constructs and varargs functions are also covered.

Emphasis is given to the processing of command line arguments and environment variables so students will be able to write flexible, user-friendly programs. The course also includes coverage of portability tips drawn from experienced programmers working in production environments. Comprehensive hands on exercises are performed throughout training each day to reinforce key concepts.

Prerequisites

Understanding of fundamental programming concepts.

• Operating System Independence
• Design Goals and Capabilities
• Flavors of C

• Compile-Time Directives
• Use of typedef
• C Preprocessor Syntax

• Fundamental Data Types and Qualifiers
• Constants and Strings
• Storage Classes
• Scope and Block Structure
• Scope and Data Hiding
• Data Initialization

• Advantages of Pointers
• User of Pointers
• Pointer and Address Arithmetic
• Dynamic Storage Allocation
• sizeof
• Double Indirection

• Functions versus Inlining
• Purpose of Macros
• Use of Macros
  • Making Code More Readable
  • Auto Adjustment of Compile Time Values
  • Conditional Compilation
  • Making Code Portable
  • Simplifying Complex Access Calculations
• Advanced Micro Design Tips
• Using Macros to Help Write Portable Programs
• When to Use a Macro instead of a Function
• Using Macros for Debugging

• Purpose of Arrays
• Declaring an Array
• Initializing an Array
• Addressing Elements
• Stepping Through an Array
• Variable Size Arrays
• Arrays of Pointers
• Arrays of Strings
• Passing an Array to a Function
• Dynamic Memory Allocation
• Multidimensional Arrays

• Standard I/O Library
• Character Set Encoding
• Standard Input and Output
• Character I/O Functions
• Formatted I/O Functions
• String Constants

• Problem Analysis
• Instrumenting with printif
• Instrumenting with ctrace
• The Purpose of Debuggers
• How Not to Use Debuggers
• Symbolic Debuggers

• Arithmetic, Logical, and Bit Operators
• Precedence and Associativity
• Assignment and Casting
• The Conditional Operator

• Conditional Constructs: if, switch
• Looping Constructs: while, do, for
• Programming Style

• Purpose of Functions
• Functions versus Inlining
• Automatic Variables
• The Argument Stack
• Passing By Value
• Passing By Reference
• Declaring External Functions
• Function Prototyping
• ANSI Prototyping
• The _NO_PROTO Compiler Symbol
• Varargs Functions
• Passing a Function as an Argument
• Designing Functions for Reusability
• Calling a Function from Another Language
• Returning a Dynamically Allocated Value Using Double Indirection
• Casting the Return Value of a Function
• Recursion and Reentrancy

• Purpose of Structures
• Defining and Declaring Structures
• Accessing Members
• Pointers to Structures
• Dynamic Memory Allocation
• Passing a Structure to a Function
  • As a Pointer
  • Passing the Actual Structure

• Nested Structures
• Arrays of Structures
• Bit Fields
• Unions
• Linked Lists

• Character I/O
• Unformatted File I/O
• Formatted File I/O
• Math Functions
• Miscellaneous Functions

• Strings as Character Arrays
• String Library Functions
• Reading and Writing Strings

• argc and argv
• Parsing Command Line Options
• Accessing the Environment Array

• Structuring Code for Quality, Reliability, Maintainability
• Designing for Modularity and Reusability

• Writing Portable Code
• Use of Macros
• ANSI C Limits
• Feature Test Macros
• Client/Server Design
• Performance Considerations

All Date/Location Information