C Data, Memory, and I/O

This unit develops students’ understanding of C data representation, memory management, pointers, and input/output. Students will practice bit-level operations, variable sizing, strings/arrays/pointers, file access, debugging, and use of libraries to prepare for advanced pointer and systems topics in the final unit.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze and calculate variable storage requirements and bit-level representations (including endianness and hexadecimal notation) to predict memory use and data layout in C programs.
• Apply pointer and array concepts to implement and manipulate strings, functions, and singly linked lists using pointer arithmetic and dynamic memory where appropriate.
• Demonstrate file input/output and library usage by implementing sequential and random file access, formatting output with printf, and using time and randomization functions from standard libraries.
• Evaluate and debug C programs using an IDE and debugger to locate and fix assignment vs. equality errors, logic/loop/control-flow bugs, pointer-related faults, and to apply consistent naming and constant usage.