Slashdot Mirror
C
Lost in the Company of Giants
It's hard not to take a book like C and compare it to such acclaimed and trusted books as K&R, Expert C Programming, and other lesser known, but equally good tomes. Unfortunately C doesn't really compare with many of the other classic books covering the C language. For starters, the writing in this book isn't quite up to the same caliber as the other books. Part of the problem with this book is language. English does not appear to be the author's native language. There are sentences in this book that require a few glances to glean the full meaning. C is difficult enough to present without a language barrier introducing more problems. Another problem is organization. The ideas presented at the beginning of the book are muddled and disjointed, with multiple ideas introduced but not formally explained until later. Beginners will have a terrible time working through this book without becoming quickly confused, and experienced programmers will likely pass on this book in favor of the other well-known books.
Not All Bad
The book is not all bad, however. The examples in the book are plentiful and are based on tried-and-true examples found in books like K&R. There are some idioms that are used in the examples that will irk the more structured programmers (not using braces in certain areas being the biggest example), but most of the examples are pretty good. Also, the explanations of the more advanced topics are relatively good considering how confusing the more basic material is. Memory management is explained well, with clear diagrams (although the programs are a bit confusing without a careful eye).
So What's in it for Me?
Addison-Wesley is clearly marketing this book to the same crowd that purchases quick-learning books. Unfortunately beginners purchasing this book will quickly find themselves lost amid the confusing descriptions in this book. Those who manage to muddle through will find some tasty bits of information locked inside, but the work involved in getting there outweighs the rewards. Most programmers will probably want to leaf through a copy of this book before purchasing it to make sure they'll get the most out of it.
You can purchase C from Fatbrain. Want to see your own review here? Just read the book review guidelines, then use Slashdot's handy submission form.
Link
What about that goddamn wired up teddy bear... That thing was AWESOME!!!!
Can you tell what it is yet...?
Hint: the answer lies at this marvellous page.
* g o a t s e x * g o a t s e x * g o a t s e x *
g88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888g
o8/88888\8888888888888\888888888888/8888\8888888o
a|8888888|8888888888888\8888888888|888888|888888a
t|8888888`.8888888888888|888888888|8888888:88888t
s`88888888|8888888888888|88888888\|8888888|88888s
e8\8888888|8/8888888/88\\\888--__8\\8888888:8888e
x88\888888\/888_--~~8888888888~--__|8\88888|8888x
*888\888888\_-~88888888888888888888~-_\8888|8888*
g0000\_00000\00000000_.--------.______\|000|0000g
o000000\00000\______//0_0___0_0(_(__>00\000|000 0o
a0000000\000.00C0___)00______0(_(____>00|00/000 0a
t0000000/\0|000C0____)/ \0(_____>00|_/00000t
s000000/0/\|000C_____) |00(___>000/00\0000s
e00000|000(000_C_____)\______/00//0_/0/00000\000e
x00000|0000\00|__000\\_________//0(__/0000000|00x
*0000|0\0000\____)000`----000--'0000000000000|00*
g0000|00\_0000000000___\
o000|00000000000000/0000| |00\000000000000|o
a000|0000000000000|0000/ \00\00000000000|0a
t666|6666666666/6/6666| |66\66666666666|0t
s666|666666666/6/666666\__/\___/6666|6666666666|s
e66|66666666666/66666666| |6666666|666666666|e
x66|6666666666|666666666| |6666666|666666666|x
* g o a t s e x * g o a t s e x * g o a t s e x *
you may not think
that it is obvious
was shot in the face
with a gun.
was a little baby
sdf sdfs w3rwdf wer dfsxv wer435 df 235 325rsf dwf 234 2352 efsdfs
kjashlskfh lasdfjhasldfh ladsjhlashf fhldshf lsadjhsaldf sdfhs aldkhfsdlf
aslkjf pewnr 3224 asdj82 wdrf 324 asf wq4 234 sed safdsd f3w523 5 dwf df 23 4 234 234sdf. saflku 2wer sadf er3 df we5 132tdwa fet 425 6 wqef qw5e dg fdee wr6y 3rt wet e 6243 6 dsf fg dj e 341 563wqlkejq lqwk ejqlwkje qlw ejlqwe jqlw euqop4u 231b4qs dfasxw 5 3245. 342 345qwdaf asrt34q5 3q. 7 r, sdoifu owei ur ow qeur98 y3294y d sdg av fighef hishfiewrh ti3yrq q5ru w0tu 9wer9uq32y42 0 oy ifehisdfhisudyf iqw iu hweto yw9!
Once upon a time there
er after, until he
was shot in the face
with a gun.
sdfjh 304ujr osdhc 9whe9hrti fns e f34 5ef sdf 235ui wodfpisa, wdfjh ss9 8ywdr fbq3r 2erwdfaw qw3e qwer sdf, 3r wejfdoi hwadof oewrj erfawf e, woweru owuero uwqeor u ower sw d q3e qfs! sldkj oad asdasd. wqer wdf sdg 45y ut5.
54yt4 9wue wqr erg rt 4 6dfs qw 434 457 rt udf gsadh rowqyr123 52e jxf wweor wer 23 f 4 6 4ry
asd qwrw, weriwfd hiuwr!
ksdfh sdfedg er h tyheqtweads tru r5 wery ywet ewt w. ewrt r u e tu retrt y qrew yrt u uueweqy u
w et fgcbcb. 3lurodj firthiqwuh.fsd fvwq et 435 egf, 435t foigj orejtp0w 0ut034ut9 u0weuf 0wdtu werjtowhr ib325 34 6te rg sdf 3e!
Come on, you crack smoking moderators. Mod that post up as funny, funny, funny. It should get at least a +3 for humor like that.
Though its been a while since I have programmed in C, I think it is worth noting, for new users, that learning C, is a lot easier than trying to learn C++. I tried to learn C++, but as a newbie programmer, it got very confusing. I don't remember why, but C was just a lot easier to learn. I never went on to study C++ (perl got really interesting). But, my advice for anybody wanting to go into programming, take a look at C first.