Creating an executable

``C and C++ compilation system'' describes the C and C++ compilation system, the set of software tools that you use to generate an executable program from C or C++ language source files. It contains material that is of interest to the novice and expert programmer alike. It has been broken into two main subtopics:

1. The first section, ``Compiling and linking'', details the command line syntax that is used to produce a binary representation of a program -- an executable object file. It also describes the options that let you tailor the link editor's behavior to your needs. A discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of each model is included.

2. ``Libraries and header files'' focuses on the standard C library and the functions you use for standard I/O. It also describes the math library and libgen. The header files that you need to include in your program if you call a function in these libraries are listed.

``C++ language'' provides an introduction to the C++ language and discusses the C++ dialect accepted by the compiler. A description of error and warning messages produced by the C++ compiler can be found in ``Compiler diagnostics''. ``Instantiating C++ templates'' describes manual and automatic template instantiation.