CLion, a professional IDE for C

PublishedJanuary 9, 2024

I am Jyotiprakash, a deeply driven computer systems engineer, software developer, teacher, and philosopher. With a decade of professional experience, I have contributed to various cutting-edge software products in network security, mobile apps, and healthcare software at renowned companies like Oracle, Yahoo, and Epic. My academic journey has taken me to prestigious institutions such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison and BITS Pilani in India, where I consistently ranked among the top of my class.

At my core, I am a computer enthusiast with a profound interest in understanding the intricacies of computer programming. My skills are not limited to application programming in Java; I have also delved deeply into computer hardware, learning about various architectures, low-level assembly programming, Linux kernel implementation, and writing device drivers. The contributions of Linus Torvalds, Ken Thompson, and Dennis Ritchie—who revolutionized the computer industry—inspire me. I believe that real contributions to computer science are made by mastering all levels of abstraction and understanding systems inside out.

In addition to my professional pursuits, I am passionate about teaching and sharing knowledge. I have spent two years as a teaching assistant at UW Madison, where I taught complex concepts in operating systems, computer graphics, and data structures to both graduate and undergraduate students. Currently, I am an assistant professor at KIIT, Bhubaneswar, where I continue to teach computer science to undergraduate and graduate students. I am also working on writing a few free books on systems programming, as I believe in freely sharing knowledge to empower others.

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Jyotiprakash's Blog

251 posts

I'm Jyotiprakash, a software dev and professor at KIIT, with expertise in system programming.

Let's go through the process of setting up a professional environment for C programming using CLion, a powerful Integrated Development Environment (IDE) from JetBrains. Please follow these steps carefully:

Registering on JetBrains as a Student:
- Visit JetBrains for Education.
- Click on “Apply Now” under the “For Students and Teachers” section.
- Create a JetBrains account using your KIIT email address or log in if you already have one.
- Follow the instructions to verify your academic status. You might need to check your KIIT email inbox for a verification email.
- Wait for JetBrains to approve your application, which can take a few days.
Downloading and Installing CLion:
- Once your account is approved, download CLion from the JetBrains website.
- Choose the installer according to your operating system (Windows/MacOS/Linux).
- Install CLion by following the on-screen instructions.
Registering CLion:
- Open CLion and log in using your JetBrains credentials linked to your KIIT email.

Setting Up the Project in CLion

First Time Setup in CLion:
- When you start CLion for the first time, you might be asked to import settings. If you have a previous version installed, select to import settings from it. If not, proceed with the default settings.
Creating a New C Project:
- Go to New Project -> C Executable.
- Choose an appropriate location for your project and select C11 as the language standard.
- If CLion prompts you to select a toolchain and you have multiple toolchains (like MinGW, Cygwin, WSL) installed, MinGW should be automatically chosen as the default. Please select MinGW.
- Wait for CLion to automatically detect the C/C++ compilers, the Make utility, and debuggers.
- Click 'OK' to proceed.
Writing and Running the Hello World Program:
- You’ll find that a main.c file with a Hello World program is already present in your new project. This is a simple program that prints "Hello, World!" to the console.
- To run this program, click on the green play (run) symbol at the top of the screen.
- In the menu that appears, click on the first option, 'Run', to execute the program.
- You’ll see the output of the program in a panel at the bottom of the CLion window.

Remember, setting up your development environment correctly is crucial for a smooth programming experience. If you encounter any issues, don't hesitate to ask for help.

Happy Coding!

Command Palette

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Setting Up the Project in CLion