This first chapter is purely optional. If you already know how to build C code, especially if you’re familiar with working at the command prompt, stop wasting time and merrily skip up to chapter 2. Otherwise, slug it out and
- Review the C language development cycle
- Use an integrated development environment (IDE) to build code
- Explore the excitement of command-line programming in a terminal window, just like Grandpa did
- Review options for linking in libraries and supplying command-line arguments
The purpose of this material is for review, though if you’ve never used a command line to program, you’re in for a treat: I find command-line programming to be fast and easy, specifically for the tiny programs created in this book. This code is well suited for the command-line environment.
Still reading? Good. This chapter serves as a review when your C programming skills are rusty or if you just want to confirm that what you know is up to par for successfully navigating the rest of the book. I appreciate that you’re still here. Otherwise, these pages would be blank.
And why do skills get rusty? Is it the iron and oxygen? The field of computer jargon needs to plant new terms for poor skills, something highly offensive and obnoxious to the point of being widely accepted. I’ll ruminate on the topic, and maybe add a quiz question along these lines at the end of the chapter.