Whatever the initial reason, I hope you come to appreciate the great creative possibilities opened up by this most ubiquitous of modern inventions.
You may have a problem that hasn't been solved by commercial software you may want a better understanding of how commercial programs function so you can figure out how to get around their shortcomings and peculiarities or perhaps you're just curious about how computers perform their seemingly magical feats. Whether you are using this book on your own or in school, there are many good reasons to learn how to program. Optimizing C book also draws on my nearly 30 years of experience as a programmer in diverse fields of application, during which I have become increasingly concerned about the amount of effort spent in reinventing optimization techniques rather than applying those already developed. Many of the optimization techniques presented are derived from my reading of academic journals that are, sadly, little known in the programming community.
