These directions on getting started with gdb on atlas are provided courtesy
of Prof. Hybinette.  It works the same way on odin, and the same way for
C programs (compiled using gcc) as for C++ programs.  --  RWR 6/8/09
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Finding BUGS in programs:

Use the debugger gdb. There is additional documentation on the web, including
several tutorials linked from the "resources" sub-page of the course main page.:

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To get a quick idea what is wrong with your program, you will need to
compile the program using the "-g" flag.

I.e.

        g++ -g -c -o MainRectangle.o MainRectangle.cpp
        g++ -g  -c -o Coordinate.o Coordinate.cpp
        g++ -g  -c -o Rectangle.o Rectangle.cpp
        g++ -g -o MainRectangle MainRectangle.o Coordinate

then run the debugger:

 {ajax:maria:245} gdb MainRectangle
 GNU gdb 5.0
 Copyright 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
 GDB is free software, covered by the GNU General Public License, and you are
 welcome to change it and/or distribute copies of it under certain conditions.
 Type "show copying" to see the conditions.
 There is absolutely no warranty for GDB.  Type "show warranty" for details.
 This GDB was configured as "sparc-sun-solaris2.8"...
 (gdb)


Enter the command "run":

(gdb) run
Starting program: /home/profs/maria/1730/ctest/unix/MainRectangle

"E" Enter new coordinates.
"V" View rectangle length, width, perimeter, and area.
"D" Display rectangle coordinates.
"I" Enter positive multiplier to shrink/grow rectangle.
"Q" Quit the program.

Please, select from menu above >
Program exited normally.
(gdb)

To get help on commands select the command "help"

(gdb) help
List of classes of commands:

aliases -- Aliases of other commands
breakpoints -- Making program stop at certain points
data -- Examining data
files -- Specifying and examining files
internals -- Maintenance commands
obscure -- Obscure features
running -- Running the program
stack -- Examining the stack
status -- Status inquiries
support -- Support facilities
tracepoints -- Tracing of program execution without stopping the program
user-defined -- User-defined commands

Type "help" followed by a class name for a list of commands in that class.
Type "help" followed by command name for full documentation.
Command name abbreviations are allowed if unambiguous.


useful commands to get help on are:
        breakpoints
        running
        files