This book is meant to help the reader learn how to program in C. It is the definitive reference guide, now in a second edition. Although the first edition was written in 1978, it continues to be a worldwide best-seller. This second edition brings the classic original up to date to include the ANSI standard.

From the Preface:

We have tried to retain the brevity of the first edition. C is not a big language, and it is not well served by a big book. We have improved the exposition of critical features, such as pointers, that are central to C programming. We have refined the original examples, and have added new examples in several chapters. For instance, the treatment of complicated declarations is augmented by programs that convert declarations into words and vice versa. As before, all examples have been tested directly from the text, which is in machine-readable form.

As we said in the first preface to the first edition, C "wears well as one's experience with it grows." With a decade more experience, we still feel that way. We hope that this book will help you to learn C and use it well.

The definitive reference guide to C programming from K&R for writing good code that works and is easy to modify

Learn how to program in C from the developers of C, Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie. Intended for those with at least some experience with one other language (even if you are a novice), this book contains a tutorial introduction to get new users started as soon as possible and separate chapters on each major feature:

• Types, operators, and expressions
• Control flow
• Functions and program structure
• Pointers and arrays
• Structures
• Input and output

This second edition of The C Programming Language describes C as defined by the ANSI standard and includes a reference manual that conveys the essentials of the standard in a smaller space for easy comprehension for programmers.

"K&R is one of my favorite books. The style of the tutorial chapters is so deceptively light and simple and the manual so crisp. Much of C's reputation of simplicity comes from the clarity and great little examples from this book. My 1978 copy has lost its cover and my K&R2 is somewhat dog eared. Above all, K&R is a useful book."

Bjarne Stroustrup, designer and original implementer of C++, and author of The C++ Programming Language