C Syntax
Syntax
You have already seen the following code a couple of times in the first chapters. Let's break it down to understand it better:
Example explained
Line 1: #include <stdio.h> is a
header file library that lets us work with input and output
functions, such as
printf() (used in line 4). Header files add functionality to C programs.
Don't worry if you don't understand how #include <stdio.h> works. Just think of it as something that (almost) always appears in your program.
Line 2: A blank line. C ignores white space. But we use it to make the code more readable.
Line 3: Another thing that always appear in a C program, is
main(). This is called a
function. Any code inside its curly brackets {} will be executed.
Line 4: printf() is a
function used to output/print text to the screen. In our example it will output "Hello World!".
Note that: Every C statement ends with a semicolon ;
Note: The body of int main() could also been written as:
int main(){printf("Hello World!");return 0;}
Remember: The compiler ignores white spaces. However, multiple lines makes the code more readable.
Line 5: return 0 ends the main() function.
Line 6: Do not forget to add the closing curly bracket } to actually end the
main function.