Linux C Programming from Beginner to Mastery

Using Ubuntu 11.04 as its practice platform, this book systematically explains how to program in C within a Linux environment. Through numerous directly runnable program examples, it helps readers start from zero and master C development on Linux, gradually acquiring the ability to develop larger applications. The book covers Linux basics and common commands; setting up the C development environment under Linux and its compilation and debugging toolchain (the gcc compiler, make/Makefile project management, autoconf/automake automated builds, gdb debugging, and integrated development environments); system calls for file and directory operations in C; the use of standard I/O library functions; and concurrency topics such as the concept of processes, process creation and control, interprocess communication, and thread creation and synchronization. In the advanced section it further introduces socket-based network programming, methods for accessing databases from C, and practical GTK+/GNOME graphical interface programming. The book is organized from easy to advanced: it first tackles "installing the system and running your first Linux C program," then explains compilation and project management, and then goes layer by layer into system calls, processes and threads, networking, and interface development, forming a progressive learning path from basic operations to comprehensive applications. The code examples are accompanied by explanations, and the book includes a DVD with the example source code and other companion resources (the disc may require an external optical drive or an older system to read on current devices). Because the book uses Ubuntu 11.04 and its toolchain and examples date from an earlier era, some interface and command details differ from current mainstream distributions, but core knowledge such as Linux system calls, the process and thread model, and socket programming remains generally applicable.