Linux Programming by Example (By Example) [Paperback]

Kurt Wall (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 3, 1999 | Series: By Example

For Linux courses covering programming where students have had exposure to C programming. Linux Programming By Example covers the basics to allow students to start programming working applications in a Linux environment. It assumes students have some knowledge of C, but no experience in Linux. It covers many topics, including using GNU development tools, system programming, file handling, debugging, memory management, network programming, and application programming interfaces. It also teaches students how to use Linux to its fullest potential as an operating system.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Linux Programming By Example introduces programmers with some background in C but no knowledge of the specifics of Linux programming to the fundamentals of Linux system programming and application development. Topics covered include using GNU development tools, system programming, file handling in Linux, interprocess communication, network programming, application programming interfaces, debugging and memory management, and version control and software distribution.

About the Author

Kurt Wall has been using UNIX since 1993 and has been hooked on Linux for nearly as long. He currently maintains the Informix on Linux FAQ and is President of the International Informix Users Group's Linux Special Interest Group. He is Vice President of the Salt Lake Linux Users Group, where he recently gave a presentation on Linux and databases. Formerly employed with US West, Kurt now writes and edits full time. He recently completed his first book, Linux Programming Unleashed.

Product Details

• Paperback: 450 pages
• Publisher: Que; 1st edition (December 3, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789722151
• ISBN-13: 978-0789722157
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,327,159 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very decent book, June 20, 2000

By 

Anatoly Korzun "a_k" - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Linux Programming by Example (By Example) (Paperback)

The book consists of 5 parts, appendices (the 6th part) and covers the following topics:

1. Introduction to Linux environment and basic development tools (gcc and make).

2. System programming (processes, signals, system calls, file handling and daemons).

3. Some Linux APIs (Berkeley database, ncurses, sound API) and creating your own libraries.

4. Interprocess communication (pipes, shared memory, semaphores and sockets).

5. Programming utilities (RCS, gdb, RPM and other packaging).

Everything is done using C. All explanations are clear and concise, and are illustrated by the sample project. Appendices contain lots of useful Internet links by categories.

The book looks very good but in my opinion it could be even better if the author used C++ instead of C. Writing UI with ncurses is a bit obsolete, but the author has promised to write about Xwindow and OpenGL in his next book. We'll see.

SUMMARY: in my opinion if you have at least a moderate Unix/Linux experience you won't learn too much from this book. But if you know a little about Unix/Linux programming (and have a working knowledge of C) you will probably love it.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Whoops, where's the errata?, April 18, 2001

By 

Matthew Flower (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Linux Programming by Example (By Example) (Paperback)

While "Linux Programming by Example" is very educational for someone who is new to Linux Programming, the book is marred by endless typographical and programming errors. I have gone through the first 9 chapters and my error count is easily over 10 by now.

Que gets bad marks for not providing *any* errata for this book. While someone who is at least mildly proficient in C should be able to fix the bugs, providing an errata would show dedication to quality. The code can be downloaded from Que's site easily. The code all compiles correctly and comes with Makefiles omitted from the book.

All in all, this is a great book for learning programming. The book goes into enough depth in several subject areas to give the reader a taste of what can be done in linux. The book is definitely intended to be one that you read cover to cover.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seems good so far., February 3, 2000

By 

Anonymous linuxer. (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Linux Programming by Example (By Example) (Paperback)

The book is very much in the style of Stephen Williams' Advanced Programming in the UNIX environment. Similar concepts and explanations, but held tightly in the Linux realm and style. Deviations and additions of LINUX to the POSIX standards are shown, and the book is full of examples that more often than not illustrate the point at hand with out other excess baggage.

Although not finished yet, it has been very good so far.