C for COBOL Programmers: A Business Approach (Paperback)

by Jim Gearing (Author)
Key Phrases: nonconforming example, general ledger, minimal program, Example Line, Parameter Definitions, Calling Functions (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Here is the ideal book for the tens of thousands of COBOL programmers in business who want to become quickly proficient in C. Written by an experienced business data systems engineer, it is a true survival guide which uses the reader's knowledge of COBOL to build a framework for learning C easily and quickly.

From the Inside Flap

This book was born of rage.

When I first tried to learn the C language in 1985, I could not find a book that made sense to me. I had been designing business systems and programming COBOL for more than 15 years. All the books on C that I found were "self-referential." That is to say, the authors had been writing C for so long that they had forgotten what it was like not to know it. I gave up after a few months. I was enraged that nobody had written a readable and useful book.

One day in 1988 my client, Rob Gillette, dropped 20 C programs on my desk and said, "Here, Jim, learn C and finish this subsystem." I went back to the bookstore and found the books to be a little better than three years before, but still not very good. I learned C, but it was a painful experience.

In 1991 I began working on business systems being developed in C. It was at this time I realized that I could write the book I had been looking for: C for COBOL Programmers.

C is just another language. Much of it works like COBOL, but with symbols instead of words. Parts of C have assumptions different from COBOL, and parts have rules different from COBOL. The purpose of this book is to use your knowledge of COBOL to teach you C. The book shows you where C works the same way as COBOL and shows you where it's different. It also focuses on the parts of C used most often in business systems.

C has some very nice features and some that are a real pain in the neck, just like COBOL.

Come on, jump in! The water's not that cold!

0805316604P04192001

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Product Details

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional (January 7, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805316604
• ISBN-13: 978-0805316605
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,497,998 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Reference, May 9, 2001

By	Richard D. Haines (Troy, Michigan USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I found most C training books frustrating because I had too many questions, questions about file structure, storage, and definitions. This book explained the answers in a language I could understand, Cobol. I would not use this book as the sole teacher of the C language but it sure relieved many of the frustrations I had in the beginning. Gearing's approach was almost the complete opposite of every other C book and I think I needed both approaches to obtain the desired result, learning C.

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good Book for COBOL programmers to learn C, June 19, 2005

By	Abey Elbin "Saints - Abey" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Very simple English representations and very easy to understand , when you already know COBOL. Comparisons with COBOL and C - chapters are very good. Repetions inside this book is very usefull and this will always give you a good feeling.Also you can refresh your COBOL knowhow with this Book.I am really happy to get this book.

Elbin Abey.