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Offline _Nicco_

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C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« on: September 19, 2012, 02:04:08 am »
Hey everyone.  I'd like to know if anyone would recommend any books on C programming.  I just started wanting to program my calculator but I've already had programming experience with Java ( I took a class on it at school).  I want to get going on C programming but there are so many different books on it.  Should I get a book or just watch tutorials?  What tutorials are good?  I have a Ti-Nspire CX CAS and would like to get some programs running on it so I really want to learn C as soon as possible.

Thanks
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Offline Lionel Debroux

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #1 on: September 19, 2012, 02:13:29 am »
Quote
I have a Ti-Nspire CX CAS and would like to get some programs running on it so I really want to learn C as soon as possible.
That's a courageous choice of yours - most people give up on the closed CX CAS platform and use something more open, such as a computer, a Raspberry Pi (significantly more powerful than a Nspire but four to six times cheaper), an Ordroid-X, etc :)

In French, the Site du Zéro tutorials can be a good source of information; I don't know which are the best English-speaking resources for learning C.
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Offline SpiroH

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #2 on: September 19, 2012, 07:47:19 am »
I'd like to know if anyone would recommend any books on C programming.  I want to get going on C programming but there are so many different books on it.  Should I get a book or just watch tutorials?  What tutorials are good?
1.Start with a good tutorial, this one, for example: http://computer.howstuffworks.com/c23.htm/printable; 2. Do some simple programming (there are tons of C source code samples in the net); 3. If you don't get bored, buy a good book (scan its contents beforehand) it will help you to clear up some doubts. Here is a good and cheap (<$10) one: http://www.amazon.com/Book-C-Al-Kelley/dp/0805368604. Yeah, it looks old (1984) but so is the language (1972): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C_language
LBNL, do not wait for the best choice, maybe it will never come up. So the answer to your question is: you'll need both: tutorial(s)+book(s). Good readings.


Offline _Nicco_

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #3 on: September 19, 2012, 07:04:52 pm »
That's a courageous choice of yours - most people give up on the closed CX CAS platform and use something more open, such as a computer, a Raspberry Pi (significantly more powerful than a Nspire but four to six times cheaper), an Ordroid-X, etc :)

In French, the Site du Zéro tutorials can be a good source of information; I don't know which are the best English-speaking resources for learning C.

Thanks for the reference but I don't speak French.  I chose the CX CAS because I use it nearly every day for school but I'm still planning on getting a raspberry pi. :)

1.Start with a good tutorial, this one, for example: http://computer.howstuffworks.com/c23.htm/printable; 2. Do some simple programming (there are tons of C source code samples in the net); 3. If you don't get bored, buy a good book (scan its contents beforehand) it will help you to clear up some doubts. Here is a good and cheap (<$10) one: http://www.amazon.com/Book-C-Al-Kelley/dp/0805368604. Yeah, it looks old (1984) but so is the language (1972): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C_language
LBNL, do not wait for the best choice, maybe it will never come up. So the answer to your question is: you'll need both: tutorial(s)+book(s). Good readings.


I'll probably end up buying the book but for now I'll just work on the tutorials.  An what do you mean by LBNL, I don't think that I have ever seen that before?  Thanks
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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #4 on: September 19, 2012, 09:07:51 pm »
Actually, the best way to learn C is to get computer science courses at college, other than that, a good tutorial can get you started and if you learn how to read documentation and/or .h files, the sky is the limit. Plus, most languages are loosely based on C, so if you learn C or another language, it will be easy to get started on the other languages.

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Offline _Nicco_

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #5 on: September 19, 2012, 09:29:02 pm »
Actually, the best way to learn C is to get computer science courses at college, other than that, a good tutorial can get you started and if you learn how to read documentation and/or .h files, the sky is the limit.

I'm already taking a course on Java at my HighSchool but they don't offer C.  What are .h files?  I know that you create .c files when programming in c but what's .h?

Thanks
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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #6 on: September 19, 2012, 09:33:53 pm »
.h files are headers containing function declarations. You'll want to include them in your .c file (like import in Java) if you want to use their corresponding libraries.

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Offline CompSystems

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #7 on: October 01, 2012, 12:55:44 pm »
Sp:Un excelente libro de C y C++ con varios ejemplos de fisica
Eng: An excellent book for C and C + + with several examples of physical

http://books.google.com.co/books?id=E1CMxC4KKSYC&printsec=frontcover&hl=es#v=onepage&q&f=false
« Last Edit: October 02, 2012, 10:58:39 am by CompSystems »

Offline _Nicco_

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #8 on: October 01, 2012, 10:48:19 pm »
Un excelente libro de C y C++ con varios ejemplos de fisica

http://books.google.com.co/books?id=E1CMxC4KKSYC&printsec=frontcover&hl=es#v=onepage&q&f=false

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Translation:
Sorry but the rules say that we need to speak in English.  My Spanish is not that good  but I can still give it a try.  Thanks for the idea.  If you can speak English please write in English.
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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #9 on: October 02, 2012, 01:16:03 am »
Is Technoplaza any good for Nspire stuff? http://www.technoplaza.net/

It's a TI-89/92+/v200 tutorial to program in C, but it's very old.

Offline CompSystems

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #10 on: October 02, 2012, 12:25:36 pm »
GCC4TI or C compiler for TInspire, contains a library that generates dialog boxes?

for TIGCC info: Lesson 10: File I/O
http://www.technoplaza.net/programming/lesson10.php

Example
Code: [Select]
// comment this next line out for TI-92+/V200 support
#define USE_TI89

#ifndef USE_TI89
    #define USE_TI92PLUS
    #define USE_V200
#endif

#include <dialogs.h>
#include <ctype.h>
#include <string.h>
#include <mem.h>
#include <stdio.h>
#include <kbd.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <alloc.h>
#include <args.h>
#include <menus.h>

// the minus and the negative sign have different values, though they look nearly identical
#define DASH    173

#ifdef USE_TI89
    enum DialogConstants    {DLG_WIDTH = 140, DLG_HEIGHT = 85};
#else
    enum DialogConstants    {DLG_WIDTH = 200, DLG_HEIGHT = 90};
#endif

enum ErrorConstants {FILEIO1,FILEIO2,FILEIO3,FILEIO4,FILEIO5,MEMERR1,MEMERR2,
             DATA_ERROR,DOB_ERROR,HEIGHT_ERROR,WEIGHT_ERROR};
enum MenuConstants  {MENU_DATA = 1000,MENU_READ,MENU_WRITE,MENU_PRINT,MENU_EXIT};

const char *error[] = {"File I/O Error","Unable to Open File!",
            "Unable to read or write data to file",
            "File I/O Status","Success!",
            "Memory Error","Not enough free memory!",
            "Data Error","DOB Must be MM-DD-YYYY",
            "Height must be between 100 and 250 cm",
            "Weight must be between 35 and 180 kg"};

typedef struct {
    char name[15];
    short int height;
    short int weight;
    char dob[11];
} PERSON;

inline void dlgError(short int title, short int msg) {
    DlgMessage((char *)error[title],(char *)error[msg],BT_OK,BT_NONE);
}

// check for valid date of birth (MM-DD-YYYY)
short int isValidDOB(const unsigned char *dob) {
    if (isdigit(dob[0]) && isdigit(dob[1]) && (dob[2] == '-' || dob[2] == DASH) &&
        isdigit(dob[3]) && isdigit(dob[4]) && (dob[5] == '-' || dob[5] == DASH) &&
        isdigit(dob[6]) && isdigit(dob[7]) && isdigit(dob[8]) && isdigit(dob[9])) {

        return TRUE;
    }

    return FALSE;
}

// check for valid height (in centimeters)
short int isValidHeight(const short int height) {
    if (height > 100 && height < 250) {
        return TRUE;
    }

    return FALSE;
}

// check for valid weight (in kilograms)
short int isValidWeight(const short int weight) {
    if (weight > 35 && weight < 180) {
        return TRUE;
    }

    return FALSE;
}

void initPerson(PERSON *p) {
    // terminate the person strings
    p->name[0] = 0;
    p->dob[0] = 0;

    // enter generic person information
    strcpy(p->name,"Dominic Silver");
    strcpy(p->dob,"06-02-1972");
    p->height = 190;
    p->weight = 87;
}

void formatRequestString(char *temp, PERSON *p) {
    // erase the buffer string
    memset(temp,0,34*sizeof(char));

    // format the buffer string so the dialog box will have default values
    sprintf(temp,"%-15s%-11s%03hd %03hd",p->name,p->dob,p->height,p->weight);

    // add string separators
    temp[14] = 0;
    temp[25] = 0;
    temp[29] = 0;
    temp[33] = 0;
}

short int getData(PERSON *p, char *buffer) {
    HANDLE dlg = H_NULL;
    int done = FALSE;
    char *token;

    // create the dialog box
    if ((dlg = DialogNewSimple(DLG_WIDTH,DLG_HEIGHT)) != H_NULL) {
        // format the dialog box
        DialogAddTitle(dlg,"Personal Information",BT_OK,BT_NONE);
        DialogAddRequest(dlg,5,15,"Name:",0,14,18);
        DialogAddRequest(dlg,5,25,"DOB:",15,10,18);
        DialogAddRequest(dlg,5,35,"Height (cm):",26,3,5);
        DialogAddRequest(dlg,5,45,"Weight (kg):",30,3,5);

        while (!done) {
            // loop until the user presses ENTER
            while (DialogDo(dlg,CENTER,CENTER,buffer,NULL) != KEY_ENTER);

            // grab the name from the string buffer
            token = buffer;
            p->name[0] = 0;
            strcpy(p->name,token);

            // grab the DOB from the string buffer
            token = buffer + 15;
            p->dob[0] = 0;
            strcpy(p->dob,token);

            // grab the height from the string buffer
            token += 11;
            p->height = atoi(token);

            // grab the weight from the string buffer
            token += 4;
            p->weight = atoi(token);

            // we're done unless we fail one of our validity tests
            done = TRUE;

            // check for valid DOB entry (MM/DD/YYYY)
            if (!isValidDOB((const unsigned char *)p->dob)) {
                dlgError(DATA_ERROR,DOB_ERROR);
                done = FALSE;
            }

            // check for reasonable valid height
            if (!isValidHeight((const short int)p->height)) {
                dlgError(DATA_ERROR,HEIGHT_ERROR);
                done = FALSE;
            }

            // check for reasonable valid weight
            if (!isValidWeight((const short int)p->weight)) {
                dlgError(DATA_ERROR,WEIGHT_ERROR);
                done = FALSE;
            }
        }

        // free the memory used by the dialog
        HeapFree(dlg);
    } else {
        dlgError(MEMERR1,MEMERR2);
        return FALSE;
    }

    return TRUE;
}

short int writeData(PERSON *p) {
    FILE *f = NULL;
    short int fileio = TRUE;

    // open file for writing
    if ((f = fopen("TESTFILE","wb")) == NULL) {
        dlgError(FILEIO1,FILEIO2);
        fileio = FALSE;
    } else {
        // write structure data to the file
        if (fwrite(p,sizeof(PERSON),1,f) != 1) {
            dlgError(FILEIO1,FILEIO3);
            fileio = FALSE;
        }

        // append the file ID tag
        fputc(0,f);
        fputs("FIO",f);
        fputc(0,f);
        fputc(OTH_TAG,f);

        // close the file
        fclose(f);
    }

    return fileio;
}

short int readData(PERSON *p) {
    FILE *f = NULL;
    short int fileio = TRUE;

    // open file for reading in binary mode
    if ((f = fopen("TESTFILE","rb")) == NULL) {
        dlgError(FILEIO1,FILEIO2);
        fileio = FALSE;
    } else {
        // read data from file into PERSON structure
        if (fread(p,sizeof(PERSON),1,f) != 1) {
            dlgError(FILEIO1,FILEIO3);
            fileio = FALSE;
        }

        // close the file
        fclose(f);
    }

    return fileio;
}

void printData(PERSON *p) {
    char name[25],dob[20],height[20],weight[20];
    HANDLE dlg = H_NULL;

    if ((dlg = DialogNewSimple(DLG_WIDTH,DLG_HEIGHT)) != H_NULL) {
        // create the personal information strings
        sprintf(name,"Name: %s",p->name);
        sprintf(dob,"DOB: %s",p->dob);
        sprintf(height,"Height: %hd cm",p->height);
        sprintf(weight,"Weight: %hd kg",p->weight);

        // format the dialog box
        DialogAddTitle(dlg,"Personal Information",BT_OK,BT_NONE);
        DialogAddText(dlg,5,15,name);
        DialogAddText(dlg,5,25,dob);
        DialogAddText(dlg,5,35,height);
        DialogAddText(dlg,5,45,weight);

        // display the dialog box
        DialogDo(dlg,CENTER,CENTER,NULL,NULL);

        HeapFree(dlg);
    }
}

void _main(void) {
    char buffer[34];
    PERSON p;
    short int done = 0, option = MENU_DATA;
    HANDLE dlg = H_NULL, menu = H_NULL;

    // initialize the person structure
    initPerson(&p);

    // format the request buffer string
    formatRequestString(buffer,&p);

    if ((dlg = DialogNewSimple(DLG_WIDTH,DLG_HEIGHT)) == H_NULL) {
        dlgError(MEMERR1,MEMERR2);
        return;
    }

    if ((menu = PopupNew(NULL,0)) == H_NULL) {
        dlgError(MEMERR1,MEMERR2);
        HeapFree(dlg);
        return;
    }

    // create Dialog Menu
    PopupAddText(menu,-1,"Enter new Data",MENU_DATA);
    PopupAddText(menu,-1,"Read Data from File",MENU_READ);
    PopupAddText(menu,-1,"Save Data to File",MENU_WRITE);
    PopupAddText(menu,-1,"Print Information",MENU_PRINT);
    PopupAddText(menu,-1,"Exit",MENU_EXIT);

    DialogAddTitle(dlg,"Main Menu",BT_OK,BT_CANCEL);
    DialogAddPulldown(dlg,5,15,"Selection:",menu,0);

    do {
        if (DialogDo(dlg,CENTER,CENTER,NULL,&option) != KEY_ENTER) {
            option = MENU_EXIT;
        }

        switch (option) {
            case MENU_DATA:
                getData(&p,buffer);
                printData(&p);
                break;
            case MENU_READ:
                if (readData(&p)) {
                    dlgError(FILEIO4,FILEIO5);
                    formatRequestString(buffer,&p);
                    printData(&p);
                }
                break;
            case MENU_WRITE:
                if (writeData(&p)) {
                    dlgError(FILEIO4,FILEIO5);
                }
                break;
            case MENU_PRINT: printData(&p); break;
            case MENU_EXIT: done = TRUE; break;
        }
    } while (!done);

    // free the memory used by the dialog box and selector menu
    HeapFree(menu);
    HeapFree(dlg);
}
« Last Edit: October 02, 2012, 01:30:11 pm by CompSystems »

Offline Lionel Debroux

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #11 on: October 02, 2012, 01:21:09 pm »
The OS of both TI-68k calculators and Nspire calculators contains a whole lot of built-in code for dialogs and menus, indeed. The one of the Nspire is only partially documented.
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Offline CompSystems

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #12 on: October 02, 2012, 01:29:45 pm »
Sorry for my bad English. GOOGLE translations

Docs of Dialog Boxes for GCC4TI where? and npsire?  :-[

For me the most valuable of the Texas Instruments calculators  is your CAS.

I think the most important to have multiple languages ​​on a calculator (Lua, C, etc), is that they can interact with the CAS, otherwise would have to develop a library of symbolic algebra "CAS.c" that is not the purpose, because TI have many years of development, from the TIderive

... for example from a program in C or LUA, I can call as the derivative of an expression and then capture the result?.

I want to create a programs with dialog boxes that operate the CAS. Which was not the reason of TI developers not to incorporate dialogue boxes?

I am not an expert programmer, but make a library that generates dialog boxes for HP50 calculators, in RPN language can interact with the HP50_CAS

http://www.hpcalc.org/details.php?id=7282

« Last Edit: October 02, 2012, 02:20:43 pm by CompSystems »

Offline blue_bear_94

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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #13 on: December 05, 2012, 05:46:26 pm »
Is Technoplaza any good for Nspire stuff? http://www.technoplaza.net/

It's a TI-89/92+/v200 tutorial to program in C, but it's very old.

I don't think so; however, it may be useful for programming in C in general. (I used this tutorial for C on my TI-89 Titanium.)
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Re: C Programming Books Or Tutorials?
« Reply #14 on: December 05, 2012, 08:22:14 pm »
if you're looking for a C book, then this one is pretty much the de-facto for introductory classes (and it even throws in some c++ at the end). there are plenty of older versions available around the internets for very low prices, too =)