C is a general-purpose programming language that is extremely popular, simple and flexible. It is a machine-independent, a structured programming language that is used extensively in various applications.
It is said that ‘C’ is a god’s programming language. One can say, C is a base for the programming. If you know ‘C,’ you can easily grasp the knowledge of the other programming languages that uses the concept of ‘C’
Where is C used? Key Applications
- ‘C’ language is widely used in embedded systems.
- It is used for developing system applications.
- It is widely used for developing desktop applications.
- Most of the applications by Adobe are developed using ‘C’ programming language.
- It is used for developing browsers and their extensions. Google’s Chromium is built using ‘C’ programming language.
- It is used to develop databases. MySQL is the most popular database software which is built using ‘C’.
- It is used in developing an operating system. Operating systems such as Apple’s OS X, Microsoft’s Windows, and Symbian are developed using ‘C’ language. It is used for developing desktop as well as mobile phone’s operating system.
- It is used for compiler production.
- It is widely used in IoT applications.
Why learn ‘C’?
As we studied earlier, ‘C’ is a base language for many programming languages. So, learning ‘C’ as the main language will play an important role while studying other programming languages. It shares the same concepts such as data types, operators, control statements and many more. ‘C’ can be used widely in various applications. It is a simple language and provides faster execution. There are many jobs available for a ‘C’ developer in the current market.
‘C’ is a structured programming language in which the program is divided into various modules. Each module can be written separately and together it forms a single ‘C’ program. This structure makes it easy for testing, maintaining and debugging processes.
How ‘C’ Works?
C is a compiled language. A compiler is a special tool that compiles the program and converts it into the object file which is machine-readable. After the compilation process, the linker will combine different object files and creates a single executable file to run the program. The following diagram shows the execution of a ‘C’ program
Summary
- ‘C’ was developed by Dennis Ritchie in 1972.
- It is a robust language.
- It is a low programming level language close to machine language
- It is widely used in the software development field.
- It is a procedure and structure-oriented language.
- It has the full support of various operating systems and hardware platforms.
- Many compilers are available for executing programs written in ‘C’.
- A compiler compiles the source file and generates an object file.
- A linker links all the object files together and creates one executable file.
- It is highly portable.