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I´m a tutor in a programming introduction course. Tomorrow i will lecture the class.

The course is a Laboratory of Programming, and we use C in a Linux Envoriment.

I think about do some different exercises to then, because CLI development is really boring.

So anyone can recommend some exercises and some VERY easy library were i can teach a GUI basic development ?

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if you start with "CLI development is really boring", then you shouldn't be teaching programming. –  Javier Jun 3 '11 at 3:11
I love programming and 90% of my time is doing scripts, so i really love it. But for a student its hard to catch them with all this WEB and Desktop world. –  bratao Jun 3 '11 at 3:27
Perhaps you can design the gui environment and have your students' code interface with it. That way, your students don't have to learn complex GUI concepts in an introductory course; they can write code that gets to the crux of the problem (i.e. string/ADT manipulation, file I/O, etc.) instead of dealing with buttons, text fields, etc.; and you have a sure way of teaching them about OOP concepts like abstraction and encapsulation. –  ladaghini Jun 3 '11 at 5:10
I do either: use c to generate html- you get pictures and buttons cross platform and super easy. If you want something more low level, I'd teach them SDL and have them develop their own GUI framework. They will learn about events and message passing. –  Rafael Baptista Jul 6 '12 at 16:38
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2 Answers


Google is full of tutorials on C-callable GUI frameworks. That's just the first one.

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I have taught C programming and I would stay away from GUIs in an intro class. If you want to do something fun, consider making a simple game with ASCII art, like a really simple version of nethack or something.

GUI programming in C is a frustrating experience.

You could also look at solving big problems that are not possible on pen and paper. Things like calculating the first 5000 prime numbers are always impressive to people who are new to programming and have an interest in math.

But again, stay away from GUIs with C in an introductory. It is not worth it.

Edit: Or show them something else C is well suited for. Bring in some variety of hardware like an Arduino robot or something and show a simple wall avoidance program or interface with an LCD display or something. I think this would be the best path to take if you want to get them hooked on C programming.

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