C programming vocabulary
static
a class of variable; holds its value between calls of a function, and defined once and once only
shell
a command language in an operating system that can be part of a user interface
header file
a file included at the beginning of a source program that links the program to a given library
main()
a function which must be included in every C program; the program starts where main() is
pre-processor
a phase which occurs before compilation of a program; allows external files to be included and allows macros to be defined
compiler
a program that converts source programs into machine code
comment
a remark ignored by the compiler, made for humans to read; delimited by /**/
variable
a sequence of program code with a name, or identifier
pointer
a special type of variable which holds the address or location of another variable
return()
a statement that allows a function to produce some usable output
declaration
a statement that tells the type and name of a variable in the program
'&'
an operator which signifies, essentially, "the address of..."
"*"
an operator which signifies, essentially, "the contents of the location pointed to by..."
syntax error
code is not written correctly; this is caught at first stage of compilation
libraries
collections of code appended to programs that provide frequently used functionality
\\
control character; backslash
\b
control character; backspace
\r
control character; carriage return, bringing cursor to start of line
\xddd
control character; character ddd where ddd is an ASCII code given in hexidecimal or base 16
\ddd
control character; character ddd where ddd is an ASCII code given in octal or base 8
\"
control character; double quotes
\f
control character; form feed
\t
control character; horizontal tab
\n
control character; new line
\'
control character; single quote
\v
control character; vertical tab
cast operator
converts one type of variable to another; format is variablename = (newtype) originalvariable
type
conveys to the compiler what sort of data is stored in the variable
initialization
declaring a variable and assigning a value to it simultaneously
macros
defined in the pre-processor stage, these are words which can be defined to stand for something complicated
low-level
detailed instructions that tell a computer exactly what to do, almost literally
.exe
file extension for a final program
.c
file extension for a source program
.o
file extension for an object
compiling
first phase of compilation: scans code and converts it to simplified form; makes separate object file for each separate source file
strings
groups of char
high-level
leaving out the details from the actual code you write; the compiler must convert it into the machine code or assembly language
object/executable file
machine code translation of the source text
control characters
non-printable characters; denoted by backslash
value parameter
one-way communication carrying information into a function from somewhere outside
actual parameters
original values that are handed over to a function
unsigned
placed in front of variable type, meaning that only positive or zero values can be used
printf()
print-format: prints out a string of text, and can also include variables
operating system
program that controls a computer, consisting of a user interface and filing system
linking
second phase of compilation: appends standard library code to object file so object can stand alone
exit()
terminates a program at any point, and closes any open files
function
the basic building block of a C program
formal parameters
the copies that work inside the function that was called
stdin
the file from which C normally gets its input; it's typically the keyboard
stdout
the file from which C normally sends its output; it's typically the monitor
command language
the instruction we give to the system itself, in order to run programs, etc.
semicolon
the mark used to denote the end of a statement
math.h
the mathematics library header file
stdio.h
the most commonly used header file; belongs to a subset of the standard C library which deals with file handling
user interface
the part of the program that is the route to all input and output
intention error
the program "works," but it does not do what you intended it to do
comments, preprocessor commands, function, declarations, variables, and statements
the six basic elements of a C program
libc
the standard C library, which is linked to every program
source program
the text files containing the written code of the program
call
to pass control to a given function
variable parameter
two-way communication, into and out of a function
float
type of variable; a floating point or real number (short)
double
type of variable; a long floating point number
long float
type of variable; a long floating point number
long
type of variable; a long integer
long int
type of variable; a long integer (usually 64-bits)
short int
type of variable; a short integer
short
type of variable; a short integer, (usually 16-bits)
char
type of variable; a single ASCII character from values -128 to 127
int
type of variable; a standard integer (usually 32-bits)
parameters
values that pass outside information to a function
local or automatic variables
variables that are defined in, and only work within, their braces
global variables
variables that are defined outside of all functions
extern
word placed in front of variable declaration for a variable that was defined in another file
reserved words
words that have special meaning in the context of C or in the context of a library