note_practical_c_programming chapter 9

Practical C Programming                                     chapter 9
1. Scope and Class
    all variables have two attributes: scope and class.
    The scope of a variable is the area of the program in which the variable is valid.
        global variable is valid everywhere, so its scope is the whole program
        local variable has a scope that is limited to the block in which its is declared and cannot be accessed outside the block.
    a block is a section of code enclosed in curly braces ({})
    you can declare a local variable with the same name as a global variable. in the block where that local variable declared, the global variable was hidden

    the class of a variable my be either permanent or temporary.
    global variables are always permanent.
    temporary variables are allocated from a section of memory called the stack at the beginning of the block
    local variable are temporary unless they are declared static
    Note: static has an entirely different meaning when used with global variables. It indicates that a variable is local to the current file.
    Note: temporary variable are sometimes referred to as automatic variables because the space for them is allocated automatically. The qualifier auto can be used to denote a temporary variable.
    
    Declaration Modifiers
    Declared                           Scope    Class             Initialized
    outside all blocks            Global    Permanent    Once
    static outside all block    Global    Permanent    Once
    inside a block                   Local     Temporary     Each time block is entered
    static inside a block         Local     Permanent     Once

2. Functions
    Functions allow us to group commonly used code into a compact unit that can be used repeatedly
    Each function should begin with a comment block containing the following:
    Name
        Name of the function
    Description
        Description of what the function does
    Parameters
        Description of each of the parameters to the function
    Returns
        Description of the return value of the function
    addtional sections may be added such as file formats, references, or notes
    return_type function_name(parameter_type parameter1, ...)

    C uses a form of parameter passing called "Call by value"
    Note: if no function type is declared, the type defaults to int.
    the variable names are not required when declaring a function prototype; however, we use the longer version because it gives the programmer additional information

3. Functions with no parameters
    K&R-style function declaration
    The keyword void is used to indicate an empty parameter list.
    void is also used to indicated that a function dose not return a value.

4. Structured programming
    flow charts
    top-down programming
    bottom-up programming
    structured programming
    object-oriented design
    
    structured programming:    these techniques are ways of dividing up or structuring a program into small, well-defined functions.
    the first step in programming is to decide what you are going to do. Next, decide how are going to structure your data.
    Finally, the coding phase begins.

    int main() {
        init();
        solve_problems();
        finish_up();
        return 0;
    }

    start by writing the main function, it should be less than three pages long. If it grows longer, consider splitting it up into two smaller, simpler functions. After the main function is complete, you can start on the others.

    In actual practice, both top-down and bottom-up techniques are useful. A mostly top-down, partially bottom-up techniques results.

5. recursion
    recursion occurs when a function calls itself directly or indirectly.
    a recursion function must follow two basic rules:
        a. it must have an ending point
        b. it must make the problem simpler