C Programming; The Basics Of C; C And The Other Programming Languages - Casio FX-890P Owner's Manual

6 C Programming

6.1 The Basics of C

6.1.1 C and the other programming languages

Early history of C
C is a programming language that incorporates such concepts as module
programming and structural syntax along the lines of ALGOL. Another well-known
offshoot of ALGOL is PASCAL, and forebears of C are the CPL and BCPL
languages. Both CPL and ECPL were early innovations by Britain's Cambridge
University in an attempt to make ALGOL 60 easier to use. This concept crossed over
to the United States, Resulting in such languages as B and Mesa.
B language was developed as the notation of the UNIX operating system, and the
development of an improved UNIX notation produced today's C language.
Why C?
Until a number of years ago, the main programming languages for mainframe
computing devices were COBOL FORTRAN and PL/1, while microcomputers were
programmed using assembler or BASIC. Recently, however, there is a definite
movement toward the use of C for programming a variety of computers. But what has
made the C the language of choice for programming?
One reason is that C was developed for thr UNIX operating system. UNIX on the
other served as basis for the widely popular MS-DOS, which means that the UNIX
notation system is applied in a wide variety of software in use today.
Another reason is the wide appeal of C due to its distinctive features noted below.
Features of C
1. Wide applicability
C can be used in a wide range of programming applications, from numeric
calculations to machine control.
2. Simple program portability
Since C is a high level programming language, programs can be used on a wide
variety of computing devices.
3. Compact programs
The abundant operators and control structures that are built into C greatly simplify
complex processing. Compared with other languages, the rules that govern C are
relatively simple making program creation quick and easy.
4. Control structures based on structured programming
Structured programming allows easily mastered programs that are similar to human
thought patterns. This means that conditional branching and repeat loop controls are
all included.
5. A host of operators
C includes arithmetic operators, logical operators, relational operators, incremental /
decremental operators, bit logical operators, and bit shift operators.
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