Thread: newbie: steps to create and compile c program in SUSE

First thing first: programming in linux is similar to programming in windows. So the whole idea is that you create a file with some code in it and then feed it to the compiler, so that it can create an "exe"-file.

To create and edit the file with C code you can use anything you want - kwrite, vim (or vi), emacs, kate etc. All of these are simple (more or less) editor programs similar to notepad in win32.

Then we have the compiler part. The best choice is the GNU C Compiler. It must be preinstalled on the system. So how do you use it? Follow these steps:

1. Create a .c file in some directory, say /home/your_username/c/
2. Make some coding and save the file in the newely created dirctory
3. Then go to the console an browse to the folder where the .c file is placed. You can do this by typing:

Code:

cd /home/your_username/c/

And then pressing Enter.
4. Now, let's compile the program. Type:

Code:

gcc name_of_your_file.c -o name_of_exe_file

Press Enter.
5. Now the program is compiled and you can execute your program by:

Code:

./name_of_exe_file

Many people find it convinient using emacs as a C editor. But this editor is rather complex in use, so I don't know if it is the right choice for you yet.

You can also use KDevelop. It's similar to Dev-C++ (and others like VC++, BCB etc.), and has a nice front-end so you do not need to compile your project from console. If you can, use KDevelop.

I got a message saying cannot find file stdio.h.

That's rather strange though. stdio.h should have been present on your computer, to be more exact - it should be in /usr/include/ directory. That it's missing means that probably the "glibc" library is not installed. Try to install it using SUSE's package manager

Is gcc missing?? Hmmm... I thought it was a default for most linux dists. You will probably need to downlod and install it as well.

That about the package manager. I think it is preinstalled. I'm not familiar with SUSE, but I think it uses the so-called rpm-packages. To install a package, you should first of all find it somewhere, for example you can search for rpm-s here or just use google. When you have downloaded a package, you should get root, that is by typing:

Code:

su

Then type in your password and browse to the download location of the rpm-file. Then type:

Code:

rpm -ivh name_of_package.rpm

You will probably get some dependecy errors, like: "package some_package has to be installed". You must satisfy these dependencies by downloading and installing all needed packages.

Another thing is: Why did you choose SUSE? If you ask me Mandrake or Fedora are a better choice for a beginner. They are easy to install - and the gcc, glibc and others are present on the installation cd-s, so you won't have to look for them elsewhere. When installing Mdk Or Fedora, you will be asked if you want to install development tools. If you choose that option, everything will be installed for you.

By the way: are you sure that the gcc and glibs packages are not on your SUSE cdrom-s (or dvd-s)?

The problem is that SUSE is not a free OS like Mandrake and Fedora. A full version of it will cost you money, while the cd you downloaded is only a kind of a preview. It doesn't include the usual things other linux distros have as default.

Yes, mandrake is a good choice. Be sure though to choose "development packages/software" in the "Package Selection" step during the installation of mdk.

cpp is only a preprocessor - it's not the compiler (but, sure, it's a part of the GNU C and as far as I know is needed for gcc to run). Also libgcc is needed for the gcc to run. So that's a good start. Now, the only thing you need to do is to go here and download the gcc-3.3.3 package and install it. Then try to compile your files.

If it doesn't work, tell me.

Take a look at the page I gave you in the previous post. Note that under the download mirror links, it lists the required packages. You MUST have all of these to get gcc to install. So if they are not present on your system, you will have fetch and install them too.

edit: You must make sure that the version of the packages match. Like: if you have gcc-3.3.3, you must also have libgcc-3.3.3. Another thing is that since you have SUSE, you must look for rpm-packages for SUSE, and not for, say mandrake. Sometimes packages form other systems may work on SUSE, but it is not advised to mix them like this.

edit2: One more thing: glibc-devel is NOT the same as glibc!