STRUCTURED

PROGRAMMIN
G IN C
BICT1201
INTRODUCTION TO
PROGRAMMING
What is a program?
 Program Definition
 Program: Set of orders (instructions or sentences) written in a
programming language that are provided to the computer to
develop a task.
 High-level programming language: – Source code must be
converted into machine code
 C has two compilation steps:
• Compilation
• Linking
 Object Code
 Object code is in a binary format that the computer's CPU can
execute. It consists of machine language instructions that
correspond to the high-level C code.

 When a C source file (with a .c extension) is compiled, the

compiler produces object code, typically stored in files with a .o
or .obj extension.

 Object code is not a complete, executable program. It often

requires linking with other object code files and libraries to
create a final executable.
 Compilation and Linking
 Compilation is the process of  Linking is the process of
translating the high-level C combining multiple object
source code into machine files and libraries into a
code (object code) that the single executable file.
computer's processor can  Takes one or more object
execute. files generated by the
 Detects syntax and semantic compiler and resolves
errors in the code. references between them
Compilation and Linking
 Interpreters
 A tool or program that directly executes C code line by line
without requiring it to be compiled into machine code beforehand.
 Interpreters process and execute code sequentially, which allows
for real-time debugging and testing.
 Errors are detected immediately upon encountering problematic
lines, making debugging easier.
BASIC PROGRAMMING STRUCTURE
Elements of a program
 Basic C code
#include <stdio.h>
int main() {
printf("Hello, I am an IT student\n");
return 0;
}
 C Alphabet
 A programming language is characterized by:
Alphabet
Allowed characters
Lexicon
Words
Syntax
Rules for word combination to make meaningful
programs
 C Alphabet
 Symbols that can appear in a C program
 Letters All but ‘ñ’ and accents (only in comments!)
 Numbers and special characters
 C is case sensitive: uppercase and lowercase letters are
different. Keywords are written in lowercase
 C Lexicon
 The lexicon includes the primitive elements to build sentences
 Keywords
 Terms with a specific meaning and are lowercase (include, define,
main, if, etc.)
 Delimiters
 Blank spaces, tabs, line breaks
 Operators
 Represent operations: arithmetic, logic, assignment, etc. (+, -,*, etc.)
 C Lexicon
 Identifiers
 Keywords cannot be used as identifiers
 Variable names (user_age) – cannot start with a number
 Function names (printf, scanf)

 Literals/ Constants
 Values that do not change: Numbers: 2, 3.14159, Strings: "Hello
world“, and Characters: 'a'
 C syntax
 Data
 Values processed by the program
 Expressions
 Combination of operands and operators with a single value as a result
May include function calls, even though they do not return a value
user_age >= 18
3.14159*radius*radius
 C Syntax
 Statements/Instructions/Statements - Complete action
 area=3.14159*radius*radius;
 printf("Hello world");
 int a;
 Blocks or compound statements
 Group of statements
 Braces { }
 The statements of the main function are enclosed in a block
 File Inclusion
 C encourages the use of previous code. New functions can be
created and reused C provides functions in libraries that can be
used in our program.
 Input and output functions in stdio.h printf() and scanf().
 To include a file, use the directive #include with the name of the file.
#include "file.h" Searches in the current folder
#include <file.h> Searches in the default compiler folder
 #include Files
 #include files are directives that instruct the preprocessor to
include the contents of a specified file into the program before
compilation.
 This is commonly used to incorporate libraries or header files that
contain function declarations, macros, and other definitions.
 Types of #include Directives
 There are two types of headers in C, these are;
 Standard Library headers
 These are predefined headers provided by the C standard library. They
typically contain function prototypes and macros for various functionalities.
 User-defined headers
 The user creates their own header files to encapsulate function declarations,
constants, and macros specific to their programs.
 Examples of #include Directives
 Standard Library Headers
 #include <stdio.h> // For input/output functions
 #include <math.h> // For mathematical functions

 User-defined headers
 // myheader.h
void myFunction();
 It is included in C as #include "myheader.h"
 Advantages of using #include
 Code Reusability
 You can reuse code in multiple programs by including header files.
 Modularity
 Helps in organizing code into separate files, making it easier to
manage and maintain.
 Access to Library Functions
 Provides access to a wide range of standard library functions and
features.
 Functions in C
 The basic building block in C is the function
 A C program is a collection of functions.
 A function is a piece of code that performs a task when it is
called/invoked
 Functions include;
 Variable declaration (for storing data)
 Statements (for performing operations)
 The Main Function
 All C programs have a main function which is the starting point of
the program.
 Automatically started when the program is run.
 The simplest C program:
int main(void) {}
return is optional, but recommended
 Function to add two numbers
 #include <stdio.h> scanf("%d", &num2);
// Function declaration // Calling the add function
int add(int a, int b); // Function that sum = add(num1, num2);
returns the sum of two integers
// Display the result
int main() {
printf("Sum of %d and %d is: %d\n",
int num1, num2, sum; num1, num2, sum);
// User input return 0; // Successful termination
printf("Enter first number: "); }
scanf("%d", &num1); // Function definition
printf("Enter second number: "); int add(int a, int b) {
return a + b; // Returning the sum of
a and b
}
DISCUSSION
What are comments in
programming?
 Constants
 Constants are fixed values that do not change during the
execution of a program.
 They can be used to represent values that should remain the same
throughout your code, enhancing readability and maintainability
 There are several types of Constants as outlined below.
 Integer Constants which are whole numbers without any decimal
points.
 Examples: 10, -5, 0
 Constants
 Floating-point Constants, which are numbers that include a
decimal point.
Examples: 3.14, -0.001, 2.0
 Character Constants - are enclosed in single quotes.
Examples: 'a', 'Z', '#'
 String Constants are sequences of characters enclosed in double-
quotes.
 Examples: "Hello", "C programming"
 Constants
 Enumeration Constants are defined using the enum keyword,
which assigns names to integral values.
 Example: enum Color { RED, GREEN, BLUE };
 Advantages of Constants
 Readability
 Named constants (like PI) make the code more understandable
compared to using raw values.
 Maintainability
 If a constant value needs to change, you only need to update it in
one place.
 Preventing Errors
 Using constants can help prevent accidental changes to values that
should remain fixed.
 How to Use Constants
 Using const Keyword
 You can also declare constants using the const keyword, which
indicates that the value cannot be modified after initialization.
 Example : const int MAX_USERS = 100;
 Constants in a C code
#include <stdio.h>
#define PI 3.14 // Defined constant
int main() {
const int radius = 5; // Constant variable
float area = PI * radius * radius;

printf("Area of the circle: %.2f\n", area);

return 0;
}
 Constants in a C code
#include <stdio.h>
#define MAX_USERS 40
int main() {
int currentUsers = 0;
// Check if adding a new user exceeds the maximum limit
if (currentUsers < MAX_USERS) {
// Add user
}
return 0;
}
Reading Task

Familiarize yourselves with the following

- Basic data types

- Modifying data types
THE END
QUESTIONS??