Help with C Programming Assignment (1 Viewer)

[Andrew S]

Yeah... this semester for me is C, next semester is Java.

 

[John Miles]

That would be like impressing your drill instructor by bringing a live grenade with you to boot camp.

 

[Sami Kallio]

Not if you understand what you are presenting.

But you're right, never try to impress with something you don't know about because the instructor will make you explain what it means. That is why copy/paste isn't useful unless you understand what you are copying.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

This is specifically the reason I said the above assignment called for a sprintf and no mallocs. Most 1st semester 'C' courses I've taken (and I've taken more than one when I changed colleges - easy credits) don't touch dynamic allocation until very late, if at all. They also spent an inordinate amount of time on scanf, which as I said I've never used in a commercial app. They should spend more time with the 'memxxx', 'sprintf" and 'strnxxx' functions. I use these everyday, often more than any APL I use.

 

[LDfan]

Now I'm getting interested. Is C or C++ for that matter still worth learning these days. With Java and VB everywhere you just don't hear much about the old school languages anymore.

Jeff

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Never thought I'd see the day when 'C' would be called "old school". Guess I'm now a dinosaur like the COBOL programmers I used to make fun of. To answer the question, yes 'C' and especially C++ are good languages to learn. Both teach good programming techniques in that they do not hold your hand (i.e. mistakes are easy to make and therefore your programming skills become stronger) and there are still a few lines of code written in these (like a gazillion or so).

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Don't laugh. My freshman programming course at Northeastern U. was in Fortran 77 and the first project was inputting via punchcards. That was in 1984!

 

[Sami Kallio]

C/C++ aren't going anywhere because of Java or VB. They have never been replacement for C/C++, just different tools for different fools.

P.S. Good speakers aren't disappearing because of Bose, are they?

 

[Christ Reynolds]

as a student taking a first semester C course now, i find K & R quite handy. i wouldnt consider it a great learning tool, but once you have already learned how to do something, it is essential.
hmm, interesting. i didnt know it was usually done this way. my professor introduced malloc (and calloc) to us before the middle of the semester, and for first semester programmers, we have become decent at using it. i think she pushes us a little more, she was senior software engineer for GE's global medical systems operation for a few years, so it's not like we are taking the course from some jerk who learned the material a few semesters ago. anyway, i'm enjoying the class quite a bit.

CJ