Table of contents

Introduction

• Nomenclature and Clarity
  • Zen of Zig Convention

1. Getting started

• Installing,downloading Zig
• Printing to the screen
• Structure of a program
• Variables and Constants
  • When to use variables and when to use constants
• Comments
• Basic Data Types
  • Booleans
  • Integer (whole) numbers
  • Floating-point numbers
  • Other types
• Tuples and text
  • Data Formats in a String
• Character Representation
  • Alphanumeric ASCII Character Codes
  • Function Aliases
  • Escape Sequences
• Chapter summary

2. Decisions

• Comparison - Boolean expressions and operators

• If
• If / Else
• If / Else if / Else
• Nested conditions
  • Table of boolean operators in Zig
• If / else that return values
• Labeled blocks
• Switch
  • Returning values with switch
  • Capturing the value in a branch
  • Switch with break and continue
• Chapter Summary

3. Arrays and Slices

• Arrays
  • Array length
  • How to check the type and size of a value
• Accessing elements
• Mutable arrays
• Slices
  • Slices in memory
  • Repeating and concatenating arrays (or slices)
  • Passing slices to functions
• Chapter summary

4. Loops

• Recursion
• Iteration

• Jump to a label
• Recursive functions
  • Tail recursion
  • Non-tail recursion
  • Infinite recursive function
• While
  • Infinite while loop
  • While with optional value capture
• For
• Chapter summary

5. Memory and Strings

• Where are the bytes
  • Memory diagram in a Zig program
  • Compile-time memory
  • Stack
  • Heap
• Memory timing
• Pointers
• String types
• Keyboard input
  • Single-line input
  • Looped input
  • Postponing commands with defer
  • Comparing strings
  • Processing text input
  • Converting text to uppercase
  • Filtering characters
  • Splitting tokens
  • Converting tokens to CRC32
• Generating strings
  • Length and combinations
  • The Vulnerability
  • Pentagonal number progression
  • PINs as strings
  • Simple permutation
• Generating random keys
• Chapter summary

6. Enums, Structs, Errors, Unions

• Enums
  • Non-exhaustive enums
  • Variables and constants inside the enum
  • Enum methods
• Structs
• Errors
  • Error handling
  • Merging sets of errors
  • errdefer
• Unions
  • Simple Union (bare union)
  • Tagged Union
• Chapter Summary

7. Functions and Lists

• Parameters and arguments
• Returning multiple values
• Destructuring
• Optional values
• Inline functions
• Libraries
• Dynamic lists - ArrayList
• Functions that return errors
• Chapter summary

8. Generics

• Introspection Builtins
• anytype y T: type
• Anonymous and Encapsulated Functions
• Generic Recursion
  • Struct Composition
• Checking for Fields with @hasField
  • Compile Error
• Generic Structs
  • Anyopaque
  • @This()
  • Specialized function pointer, @ptrCast and @alignCast
• Chapter Summary

9. Files

• Creating files in an absolute path, handling errors
• Writing files
• Reading files

• Directories
  • Getting the current directory in Zig
  • Check directory access
  • Iterate over a directory
  • Create and delete a directory
• Chapter summary

10. Creating projects with Zig

• Compiling programs in Zig
  • Compiling a simple executable: build-exe
• Creating a project: zig init
  • build.zig.zon
  • src
  • build.zig
• Example of using a library: argonaut
  • Summary of the argonaut repository
  • Features
  • Installation instructions from repository
  • Configuration files and the program
• Chapter summary

To be continued