What is the C programming language? Advantages, disadvantages and applications

Tags: programming, beginners, tutorial, css
Published: 2021-12-28 20:20:45


Programming languages ​​have changed our world, from smartphones to airline software, almost all modern devices use some kind of code. Which programming language is most influential is always debated, but the main contender is the C language.

C programming language is one of the most widely used programming languages ​​and is very important in computer science. C is considered the mother of all languages ​​because it is the root of many languages, C ++, Objective-C, C #, Java, JavaScript, Perl, PHP, Python and….

It was originally developed for working on operating systems for small computers, but in recent years has become very important in all fields. C is a high-level, versatile, portable, easy-to-use programming language that was developed about 50 years ago but is still very popular, often among the top 5 or 10 most popular languages ​​in the world. Takes.

## Language History C
The C programming language was developed by Dennis Ritchie between 1969 and 1973 at Bell Labs.

Ken Thompson, a Bell Lab employee who originally wanted to build a programming language for the new Unix operating system, changed the language of the BCPL to B.

BCPL and B languages ​​had problems such as data incompatibility, and B programs were slower than assembly programs. This led Dennis Ritchie to improve B language and then build C language. In 1972, the first version of C programming was officially released. Gradually, the C language became more popular, and in the 1980s it became the most widely used programming language, influencing many other languages.

The latest C: ISO / IEC 9899: 2018 standard is the current C language standard, known as C18, which was published in June 2018 and replaced C11 (ISO / IEC 9899: 2011). The C18 standard examines and fixes defects of the C11 standard without adding new features.

## Applications of language C
C is simple, but it is one of the most powerful languages ​​ever created, and although it is considered a high-level language, it is closer to hardware than any other language. This is why many languages ​​use C for compilation (like Python).

C was the first language to write "high-level" operating systems, as well as a complete reboot of the Unix operating system, and was instrumental in the development of object-oriented programming.

But C is a versatile language with a wide range of uses. Some of its applications are :.

- Design and development of system software and desktop applications

- Database development (popular databases such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite are written in C).

- Development of graphics-related applications such as computer and mobile games (Graphics libraries such as OpenGL are also written in C to provide 2D and 3D graphics.)

- Evaluation of various mathematical equations

- Design of compilers, operating systems and interpreters

- Full development of Unix kernel

- Design of network devices
- GUI application design. Adobe Photoshop
- Build the control system of the very popular version of Git
- Development of applications such as spreadsheets
- Design tools like GTK, Widgets and…

**It is also used in other fields:**

- Assemblers
- Devices and drivers
- Internet of Things
- Smartphones
- Embedded systems
- It is best to use C for systems:

- That require fast and direct access to hardware.
- They have limited resources (such as memory).
- Efficiency is their most important feature.
- Wherever you think C is used, in Unix, Linux, Windows, Photoshop, Web Server and….

## Differences between C, C ++, Objective-C and C # languages
These four different programming languages ​​have similar names, but there are differences in how they work and how they are used.

- C is the oldest language used in almost all systems to run compilers and control the basic functions of an operating system.
- C ++ was created in 1979, it introduced object-oriented programming with class, the most important difference with C language. Uses the grammar and syntax of the C language.
- Objective-C was launched in 1983 but has become popular in recent years. It is the driving force for Mac and iPhone applications and is higher than the C language. Object-oriented and limited to Apple hardware.
- C # (C #) was developed by Microsoft in 2001 and is the main object-oriented language for the .NET platform. In fact, it does not have much in common with C and is more of a competitor to the Java platform. At the time, Microsoft labeled languages ​​#, such as A #, F #. In addition, the formatting and management of libraries in it is much different from the C language. C # is not as close to machine code as C (although it can manage machine code to a limited extent via MSIL).

## Why use the C programming language?
Today, higher-level programming languages ​​offer many possibilities for developers, but there are many reasons to believe that C programming is still alive and well. Here are some features and reasons for the invincibility of the C language:

**Flexibility:** The C language combines the features of both high-level and low-level languages. Used on the one hand in low-level programming such as scripting drivers and cores, and on the other hand supports the performance of high-level programming languages ​​such as scripting for software programs and..

Simple grammatical structure: C is a simple and easy language and is very suitable for clear and precise understanding of basic programming concepts such as data types, operators, control commands and many more. The functional structure, data types, and rich set of library functions make it efficient and powerful.

Procedural and structured language : C programming is a procedural language whose commands are executed step by step. A C program may contain several functions to perform a specific task. C is a structured programming language. This means that the program can be divided into smaller sections and blocks using functions to make it easier to understand and read. A structured language is a subset of procedural language.

**Compatibility:** Various C features such as: direct access to machine-level hardware APIs, C compilers, resource usage and dynamic memory allocation make this language an ideal choice for scripting programs and embedded system drivers or embedding Be converted.

**Portability:** C is a highly portable, hardware-independent language. C programs can be run with little or no modification on many systems. C compilers are available for all operating systems and hardware, and you can easily write code on one system and transfer it to another ( With the same operating system).

**Compiler language:** C is a compiler language. A compiler is a program that converts a high-level or intermediate-language language into machine language that can be understood by a computer.

**Fast and powerful:** C is a very efficient language and it compiles and executes programs much faster than most other languages. Because C is designed for Unix operating system programming, it is very important that the program can run quickly with limited memory. It is one of the most powerful and fastest languages ​​and C is still used to build compilers and interpreters.

**Integration with Unix:** C is closely related to the Unix and Linux operating systems. UNIX and Linux systems come with a C compiler called GCC. In fact, in some tools, the user must be familiar with the C language.

**Return:** In C programming, return is one of the most commonly used techniques in which a function can call itself over and over again.

**Rich Library:** C has a rich set of library functions and many built-in functions, and also supports graphical programming. For this reason, writing and developing software with C language is very fast.

**Extensible:** The C language is extensible because it can easily adapt to new features.

Is the C programming language independent of the operating system?
C programs are platform independent, but their executable files depend on the operating system. This means that when the executable files of the program are created on a specific operating system, you can not run those files on another operating system. For example, if executable files are generated in Windows, they can only be run on Windows and not on Linux or any other operating system.

To download executable files for each operating system, you must recompile the program on the same operating system.

Hello World program in C language
"Hello World" is the starting point for any programmer to learn a language. This app displays the message "Hello World".

#include <stdio.h>

/ * My first app * /

 int main () {

   printf (“Hello, World!”);

   return 0;

}


****Program description
The first line is the preprocessor command <include <stdio.h #. This command introduces a series of pre-written functions into the program. For example, the print () function is defined in this preprocessor file.
All C language programs start with the main () function. This is the starting point for running the program.
The "! Printf" command "Hello, World" prints the text! Hello, World. Printf is used to display text on the page console. This is an internal C language function.
; return 0 tells the compiler that the program has finished running.
In C, comments are placed in / * * /. Comments or comments are part of the code that is not compiled and executed and is used to explain and document the program. You can also use Persian to write comments. Like, / * My first app * /

**C code is stored in a file with a .c extension. Like:** start.c

Compile the C program
The most important step when writing code in C will be the compilation because the code can only be executed after that. In fact, the program must be converted to machine language (binary language) so that the computer can understand and run it. The compiler translates and translates a high-level language into machine-understandable (low-level) language.

IDE (Integrated Development Environment) is used to write and compile C program. The IDE consists of a text editor and a compiler. We type the program in a text editor and then it is compiled by the compiler.

Although there are many IDEs for editing and compiling C programs, some of the most common are:

- Dev-C ++
- Eclipse C Compiler
- Code Blocks Compiler
- Borland Turbo C
- Digital Mars
- Turbo C ++
- Microsoft Visual Studio C ++
- MinGW
- Lcc win
- Bloodshed
- C ++ compilers
- Pelles C
It is important to note that C ++ as an extended version of C includes all of its functions. So if a compiler can run C ++ then it can easily run C program as well.

Online compilers also allow you to compile and execute your programming code online. The best online compilers for C programming are:

https://www.jdoodle.com/
https://www.onlinegdb.com/
https://www.codechef.com/ide
https://codepen.io/ltcbuzy
https://jsfiddle.net/
https://ideone.com/
https://jenny-business-school-courses.thinkific.com/courses/your-first-course

Like most of the world's greatest inventions, the C language was created out of necessity, and conditions and problems were inspiring. However, unlike many obsolete programming languages, C has stood the test of time over the years.

Even powerful technologies such as the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence, and automation could not overtake C. So it seems that this language will be with us in the future. As a result, learning C as the main language is very important when studying other programming languages.