Herbert Schildt
Encyclopedia
Herbert Schildt is an American
musician and computing author. His books, particularly on C
programming, have been best-sellers in three decades; McGraw-Hill
, which published many of his books, calls him "the world's leading programming author".
(UIUC). He was a member of the original ANSI
committee that standardized the C language
in 1989, and the ANSI/ISO
committees that updated that standard in 1999, and standardized C++ in 1998.
Schildt has written books about DOS
, C, C++, and other computer languages. His earliest books were published around 1985 and 1986. (The book Advanced Modula-2 from 1987 says on the cover that it is his sixth book.) His books were initially published by Osborne, an early computer book publisher which concentrated on titles for the personal computer
. After the acquisition of Osborne by McGraw-Hill
, the imprint continued publishing Schildt's work until the imprint was subsumed completely into the larger company. His books have sold more than 3 million copies worldwide and have been translated into "all major foreign languages".
. The program was originally published in Dr. Dobb's Journal
in August, 1989 entitled "Building your own C interpreter". This example was included in the books Born to Code In C (Osborne, 1989), The Craft of C (Osborne, 1992), and in a later edition of C: The Complete Reference.
Schildt's book The Art of C++ similarly features an interpreter for a language called Mini-C++. (Mini-C++ does not support the "class" keyword, although minimal and artificial support for
interpreter called Small BASIC in Turbo C: The Complete Reference, first edition, written in C, and another in The Art of Java (2003) written in Java
.
Code for all these is available for download from the McGraw Hill technical books website, under each book.
, appearing on all of the group's albums, most of which were produced from 1976-1978. His style is distinguished by extensive use of Oberheim
analog sequencers to create ethereal washes of sound colors, a pioneering technique which was quite cutting-edge for the pre-digital synthesizer period. He is also featured on the band's 2007 album "Song of Times."
committee members Peter Seebach, and Clive Feather, Steve Summit, author of the C FAQ, and numerous reviews in C Vu from the ACCU
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician and computing author. His books, particularly on C
C (programming language)
C is a general-purpose computer programming language developed between 1969 and 1973 by Dennis Ritchie at the Bell Telephone Laboratories for use with the Unix operating system....
programming, have been best-sellers in three decades; McGraw-Hill
McGraw-Hill
The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., is a publicly traded corporation headquartered in Rockefeller Center in New York City. Its primary areas of business are financial, education, publishing, broadcasting, and business services...
, which published many of his books, calls him "the world's leading programming author".
Life
Schildt holds both graduate and undergraduate degrees from the University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
(UIUC). He was a member of the original ANSI
ANSI C
ANSI C refers to the family of successive standards published by the American National Standards Institute for the C programming language. Software developers writing in C are encouraged to conform to the standards, as doing so aids portability between compilers.-History and outlook:The first...
committee that standardized the C language
C (programming language)
C is a general-purpose computer programming language developed between 1969 and 1973 by Dennis Ritchie at the Bell Telephone Laboratories for use with the Unix operating system....
in 1989, and the ANSI/ISO
International Organization for Standardization
The International Organization for Standardization , widely known as ISO, is an international standard-setting body composed of representatives from various national standards organizations. Founded on February 23, 1947, the organization promulgates worldwide proprietary, industrial and commercial...
committees that updated that standard in 1999, and standardized C++ in 1998.
Schildt has written books about DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, C, C++, and other computer languages. His earliest books were published around 1985 and 1986. (The book Advanced Modula-2 from 1987 says on the cover that it is his sixth book.) His books were initially published by Osborne, an early computer book publisher which concentrated on titles for the personal computer
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
. After the acquisition of Osborne by McGraw-Hill
McGraw-Hill
The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., is a publicly traded corporation headquartered in Rockefeller Center in New York City. Its primary areas of business are financial, education, publishing, broadcasting, and business services...
, the imprint continued publishing Schildt's work until the imprint was subsumed completely into the larger company. His books have sold more than 3 million copies worldwide and have been translated into "all major foreign languages".
Little C
One of Schildt's most enduring projects is the Little C interpreter, which is a lengthy example of a hand-written recursive-descent parser which interprets a subset of the C languageC (programming language)
C is a general-purpose computer programming language developed between 1969 and 1973 by Dennis Ritchie at the Bell Telephone Laboratories for use with the Unix operating system....
. The program was originally published in Dr. Dobb's Journal
Dr. Dobb's Journal
Dr. Dobb's Journal was a monthly journal published in the United States by CMP Technology. It covered topics aimed at computer programmers. DDJ was the first regular periodical focused on microcomputer software, rather than hardware. It later became a monthly section within the periodical...
in August, 1989 entitled "Building your own C interpreter". This example was included in the books Born to Code In C (Osborne, 1989), The Craft of C (Osborne, 1992), and in a later edition of C: The Complete Reference.
Schildt's book The Art of C++ similarly features an interpreter for a language called Mini-C++. (Mini-C++ does not support the "class" keyword, although minimal and artificial support for
cin and cout has been added.) There is also a BASICBASIC
BASIC is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages whose design philosophy emphasizes ease of use - the name is an acronym from Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code....
interpreter called Small BASIC in Turbo C: The Complete Reference, first edition, written in C, and another in The Art of Java (2003) written in Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
.
Code for all these is available for download from the McGraw Hill technical books website, under each book.
Starcastle
In addition to his work as a computer scientist, Schildt is the original multi-keyboardist for the progressive rock band StarcastleStarcastle
Starcastle was a progressive rock band formed in St. Louis, Missouri in 1969.-Formation:Starcastle began life in 1969 as "St. James". Heavily influenced by the British progressive rock movement of the time, the band began writing material that would eventually appear on the first album...
, appearing on all of the group's albums, most of which were produced from 1976-1978. His style is distinguished by extensive use of Oberheim
Oberheim
Oberheim Electronics is an American company, founded in 1969 by Tom Oberheim , which manufactured audio synthesizers and a variety of other electronic musical instruments.-Oberheim Electronics:...
analog sequencers to create ethereal washes of sound colors, a pioneering technique which was quite cutting-edge for the pre-digital synthesizer period. He is also featured on the band's 2007 album "Song of Times."
Reception
Schildt's books have a reputation for being written in a clear style, at least at first glance. Their technical accuracy has been challenged by reviewers, including ISO CANSI C
ANSI C refers to the family of successive standards published by the American National Standards Institute for the C programming language. Software developers writing in C are encouraged to conform to the standards, as doing so aids portability between compilers.-History and outlook:The first...
committee members Peter Seebach, and Clive Feather, Steve Summit, author of the C FAQ, and numerous reviews in C Vu from the ACCU
ACCU (organisation)
ACCU is a non-profit, worldwide user group of people interested in software development, dedicated to raising the standard of programming...
.