Get Started with C Language in Visual Studio

Introduction to C Language

If you’re interested in creating operating systems, device drivers, network protocols or embedded systems, C Language is what you need. Developed by Dennis Ritchie at Bell Labs in the 1970s, it’s a high-level general-purpose programming language.

About Visual Studio

Visual Studio is an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) created by Microsoft. It’s used to develop applications, websites, web applications, and mobile applications mostly for Windows. With its built-in support for different programming languages, C Language is also one of them.

How to Use C in Visual Studio

Step 1: Install Visual Studio

The first thing you need to do is download and install Visual Studio from the Microsoft website, then you’re good to start creating C projects.

Step 2: Create a new C project

To do this:

1. Open Visual Studio
2. Click on File > New > Project
3. In the ‘New Project’ window select Installed > Templates > Visual C++ > Windows Console Application
4. Add a project name and click on ‘Create’

Step 3: Write your C Code

Once you’ve created your project, you can start writing your C code. To do this:

1. Open the main .cpp file from the Solution Explorer
2. Start coding

Visual Studio comes with syntax highlighting, code formatting, and code snippets to help you through the coding process.

Step 4: Build and run your project

After coding, you need to compile your code and run the project. Here’s how to do it:

1. Click on Build > Build Solution to compile your code if it has no errors.
2. If there are errors in your code, Visual Studio will highlight them with red squiggles. Find and resolve all the errors before proceeding.
3. Click on Debug > Start Without Debugging to successfully run your project.

Step 5: Debug your code

If your project isn’t working correctly, you can use Visual Studio’s debugging tools to find and correct the issue. The debugging features include:

• Breakpoints
• Watch Windows
• Call Stacks

Conclusion

C Language integration with Visual Studio is simple when using these steps. Use this guide to make your own C projects in Visual Studio and begin coding today. Regardless of your skill level, Visual Studio’s features ensure that you can have an easy time writing and debugging your C code.