Aadhil Kassim P N​

B.Tech - Computer Science

Programming in C (GXEST204)
Module 1: C Fundamentals and Control Statements

1.1 C Fundamentals

●​ Character Set: Letters (A-Z, a-z), Digits (0-9), Special Characters (+, -, *, etc.),
Whitespace characters.
●​ Constants:
○​ Integer constants (e.g., 123, -45)
○​ Floating-point constants (e.g., 3.14, -0.001)
○​ Character constants (e.g., 'A', '@')
●​ Identifiers and Keywords:
○​ Identifiers: User-defined names for variables and functions.
○​ Keywords: Reserved words (e.g., int, float, return).
●​ Data Types:
○​ Basic types: int, float, char, double
○​ Derived types: Arrays, Pointers, Structures
●​ Operators:
○​ Arithmetic (+, -, *, /, %)
○​ Relational (==, !=, >, <, >=, <=)
○​ Logical (&&, ||, !)
○​ Bitwise (&, |, ^, ~, <<, >>)
○​ Assignment (=, +=, -=, etc.)
●​ Input and Output Statements:
○​ printf() and scanf() for formatted I/O.

1.2 Control Statements and Loops

●​ Conditional Statements:​

○​ if, if-else, nested if

○​ switch-case
●​ Loops:​

○​ for Loop:​

■​ Executes a block of code a specific number of times.

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Syntax:

for (initialization; condition; increment/decrement) {​

// code block​
}

Example:

for (int i = 0; i < 5; i++) {​

printf("%d ", i);​
}

○​ while Loop:​

■​ Repeats a block of code while a condition is true.

Syntax:

while (condition) {​
// code block​
}

Example:

int i = 0;​
while (i < 5) {​
printf("%d ", i);​
i++;​
}

○​ do-while Loop:​

■​ Executes the code block at least once, then repeats while the condition is
true.

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Syntax:

do {​
// code block​
} while (condition);

Example:

int i = 0;​
do {​
printf("%d ", i);​
i++;​
} while (i < 5);

●​ Key Differences Between for and while Loops:​

○​ for loop is generally used when the number of iterations is known beforehand.
○​ while loop is preferred when the number of iterations is not predetermined and
depends on a condition.
●​ Control Statements:​

○​ break Statement:​

■​ Terminates the loop immediately and transfers control to the statement

following the loop.

Example

for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) {​

if (i == 5) {​
break;​
}​
printf("%d ", i);​
}

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 ○​ continue Statement:​

■​ Skips the current iteration and proceeds to the next iteration of the loop.

Example:

for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) {​

if (i == 5) {​
continue;​
}​
printf("%d ", i);​
}

●​ Nested Loops: Loops inside another loop.

Example:

for (int i = 1; i <= 3; i++) {​

for (int j = 1; j <= 2; j++) {​
printf("i = %d, j = %d\n", i, j);​
}​
}

Example Problem: Print the Fibonacci sequence up to n terms.

#include <stdio.h>​
int main() {​
int n, t1 = 0, t2 = 1, nextTerm;​
printf("Enter the number of terms: ");​
scanf("%d", &n);​
for (int i = 1; i <= n; ++i) {​
printf("%d ", t1);​
nextTerm = t1 + t2;​
t1 = t2;​
t2 = nextTerm;​
}​
return 0;​
}

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Module 2: Arrays and Strings

2.1 Arrays

●​ Single-Dimensional Arrays:
○​ Syntax: data_type array_name[size];
○​ Example: int arr[10];
○​ Initialization: int arr[3] = {1, 2, 3};
●​ Two-Dimensional Arrays:
○​ Syntax: data_type array_name[rows][columns];
○​ Example: int matrix[3][3];
○​ Applications: Matrix operations, sorting, searching.

2.2 Strings

●​ String Declaration and Initialization:​

1.​ char str[20];

2.​ char str[] = "Hello";
●​ Common String Functions:​

1.​ strlen():​

■​ Returns the length of a string excluding the null character (\0).

■​ Syntax: int length = strlen(string);

Example:

char str[] = "Hello";​

printf("Length of string: %d\n", strlen(str));

2.​ strcpy():​

■​ Copies the content of one string into another.

■​ Syntax: strcpy(destination, source);

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Example:

char source[] = "World";​

char destination[20];​
strcpy(destination, source);​
printf("Copied string: %s\n", destination);

3.​ strcmp():​

■​ Compares two strings lexicographically.

■​ Returns 0 if strings are equal, a positive value if the first string is greater,
or a negative value if the second string is greater.
■​ Syntax: int result = strcmp(str1, str2);

Example:

char str1[] = "Hello";​

char str2[] = "World";​
int result = strcmp(str1, str2);​
if (result == 0) {​
printf("Strings are equal\n");​
} else {​
printf("Strings are not equal\n");​
}

4.​ strcat():​

■​ Concatenates (joins) two strings.

■​ Syntax: strcat(destination, source);

Example:

char str1[20] = "Hello ";​

char str2[] = "World";​
strcat(str1, str2);​
printf("Concatenated string: %s\n", str1);

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 5.​ strchr():​

■​ Finds the first occurrence of a character in a string.

■​ Syntax: char *ptr = strchr(str, character);

Example:

char str[] = "Programming";​

char *ptr = strchr(str, 'g');​
printf("First occurrence of 'g': %s\n", ptr);

6.​ strstr():​

■​ Finds the first occurrence of a substring within a string.

■​ Syntax: char *ptr = strstr(str, substr);

Example:

char str[] = "Hello World";​

char *ptr = strstr(str, "World");​
printf("Substring found: %s\n", ptr);

Example Problem: Write a program to reverse a string.

#include <stdio.h>​
#include <string.h>​
int main() {​
char str[100], temp;​
int i, j;​
printf("Enter a string: ");​
gets(str);​
j = strlen(str) - 1;​
for (i = 0; i < j; i++, j--) {​
temp = str[i];​
str[i] = str[j];​
str[j] = temp;​
}​
printf("Reversed string: %s\n", str);​

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 return 0;​
}

Module 3: Functions, Structures, Unions, and Storage Classes

3.1 Functions

●​ Function Definition and Call:

○​ Syntax: return_type function_name(parameters) { body }
○​ Example: int sum(int a, int b) { return a + b; }
●​ Recursion:
○​ Functions that call themselves.
○​ Example: Calculating factorial of a number.

3.2 Structures

●​ Definition and Syntax:​

○​ Structures are user-defined data types that group related variables of different
data types.

Syntax:

struct structure_name {​
data_type member1;​
data_type member2;​
};

Example:​

struct Student {​
char name[50];​
int age;​
float marks;​
};

Accessing Members:

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 struct Student s1;​
s1.age = 20;​
printf("Age: %d\n", s1.age);

●​ Array of Structures:​

Example:

struct Student students[3];​

students[0].age = 18;

3.3 Unions

●​ Definition and Syntax:​

○​ Unions are similar to structures, but all members share the same memory
location.

Syntax:

union union_name {​
data_type member1;​
data_type member2;​
};

Example:

union Data {​
int i;​
float f;​
char str[20];​
};

●​ Difference Between Structures and Unions:​

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 ○​ Structures allocate separate memory for each member, while unions use shared
memory.
○​ Unions are useful for memory-efficient data storage.

3.4 Pointers

●​ Declaration and Initialization:

○​ Syntax: data_type *pointer_name;
○​ Example: int *ptr;
●​ Pointer Operations:
○​ Pointer arithmetic: Increment, decrement, and accessing array elements.

Example:

int var = 10;​

int *ptr = &var;​
printf("Value of var: %d\n", *ptr);

●​ Dynamic Memory Allocation:

○​ Functions: malloc(), calloc(), free().

Example:​

int *ptr = (int *)malloc(5 * sizeof(int));​

if (ptr == NULL) {​
printf("Memory allocation failed\n");​
} else {​
// Use the memory​
}​
free(ptr);

○​

3.5 File Handling

●​ Basic Operations:​

○​ fopen(): Opens a file.

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 ○​ fclose(): Closes a file.
○​ fread(): Reads data from a file.
○​ fwrite(): Writes data to a file.

Example:

FILE *file;​
file = fopen("example.txt", "w");​
if (file == NULL) {​
printf("Error opening file\n");​
} else {​
fprintf(file, "Hello, World!\n");​
fclose(file);​
}

●​ File Pointer Manipulation:​

○​ fseek(): Moves the file pointer to a specified location.

○​ ftell(): Returns the current file pointer position.

Example:

fseek(file, 0, SEEK_END);​
long size = ftell(file);​
printf("File size: %ld bytes\n", size);

Final Exam Tips

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 1.​ Practice Key Concepts: Focus on dynamic memory, file handling, and pointer arithmetic.
2.​ Write and Test Code: Hands-on coding will reinforce understanding.
3.​ Solve Past Papers: Practice with sample questions for time management.
4.​ Debugging: Develop skills to troubleshoot segmentation faults and logical errors.

By following these structured notes and practicing diligently, you should be well-prepared to
excel in your C Programming exam.

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