Concurrent programming
Threads, locks, cores, conditions
2018-03-24 — 2020-02-17
Wherein threading and locking are examined through a sequence of example programs, condition variables are explained, and POSIX threads are introduced as the terminology and patterns to be learned.
Concurrent programming, with examples:
Mention concurrency and you’re bound to get two kinds of unsolicited advice: first that it’s a nightmarish problem which will melt your brain, and second that there’s a magical programming language or niche paradigm which will make all your problems disappear.
We won’t run to either extreme here. Instead we’ll cover the production workhorses for concurrent software — threading and locking — and learn about them through a series of interesting programs. By the end of this article you’ll know the terminology and patterns used by POSIX threads (pthreads).