┌─ FILE ANALYSIS ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ┐
│ DEVELOPER : Dennis Ritchie / ISO
│ CATEGORY : Code
│ MIME TYPE : text/x-csrc
└ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ┘
What is a C file?
C files contain source code in the C programming language, created by Dennis Ritchie at Bell Labs in 1972. C is a foundational systems programming language that directly influenced C++, Java, C#, and many others. It provides low-level memory access, minimal runtime overhead, and compiles to efficient machine code.
How to open C files
- VS Code (Windows, macOS, Linux) — With C/C++ extension
- CLion (Windows, macOS, Linux) — JetBrains C IDE
- Visual Studio (Windows) — Full C/C++ support
- Any text editor — C files are plain text
Technical specifications
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Typing | Static, weak |
| Paradigm | Procedural, structured |
| Compilers | GCC, Clang, MSVC |
| Standard | C17 (ISO/IEC 9899:2018) |
| Memory | Manual management (malloc/free) |
Common use cases
- Operating systems: Linux kernel, Windows kernel, macOS.
- Embedded systems: Firmware and microcontroller programming.
- Game engines: Performance-critical game code.
- System libraries: libc, OpenSSL, SQLite.