CS50 in Arabic Session 2 Project: Employee Salary Calculator

Problem We Want to Solve

A small shop wants to automate salary calculation for employees.

Right now, they calculate salaries manually, which is slow and can lead to mistakes.

We will build a program that:

• Takes employee information
• Calculates salary based on working hours
• Supports overtime pay
• Prints a clean, formatted salary report

What You Will Build

A simple Salary Calculator System in C that behaves like a small HR tool.

Step-by-Step Development (Phases)

Phase 1: Input System

Goal:

Read employee data correctly.

Requirements:

• Ask for employee name
• Ask for working hours
• Ask for hourly rate

Expected Output Example:

Enter employee name: Ahmed
Enter working hours: 45
Enter hourly rate: 10

Phase 2: Basic Salary Calculation

Goal:

Calculate basic salary without overtime.

Rule:

salary = hours × rate

Expected Output Example:

Salary: 450

Phase 3: Overtime Pay

Rule:

• First 40 hours = normal rate
• Extra hours = 1.5 × hourly rate

Logic:

• If hours ≤ 40 → normal calculation
• If hours > 40 → split into normal + overtime

(40 * 10) + (5 * 10 * 1.5) = 400 + 75 = 475

Expected Output Example:

Salary: 475

Final Feature: Formatted Salary Report

Instead of printing random lines, format output like a real report:

Example Output:

===============================
        SALARY REPORT
===============================
Employee Name : Ahmed
Working Hours : 45
Hourly Rate   : 10

Basic Salary  : 450.00
Overtime Pay  : 25.00
-------------------------------
Final Salary  : 475.00
===============================

Learning Goals

After this assignment, you should understand:

• How real systems are structured
• How to break a big problem into smaller phases
• How to collect data from the user using input
• How to store data inside suitable variables
• How to use data types such as int, float, and string
• How to use conditions (if / else)
• How to review your code and debug errors

Bonus Challenge (Optional Extras)

If you want to go further:

• Add tax rule: If the salary is greater than 1000, deduct 10% tax, otherwise no tax applies.
• Add performance bonus: If the employee performs excellently or reaches the target, add extra money to the salary.
• Add attendance bonus: If the employee attends all workdays without absence or lateness, add an extra bonus.

Debugging Cheat Sheet

1. Missing CS50 Library

Problem: Program does not recognize get_string, get_float

Fix:

#include <cs50.h>

Check: If error says “implicit declaration”, this header is missing.

2. Wrong Data Types

Problem: Decimal values are incorrect or rounded

Fix:

float hours;
float rate;

Check: Salary involves decimals → use float, not int.

3. Overtime Logic Error

Problem: Overtime not calculated correctly

Correct Logic:

• First 40 hours = normal rate
• Extra hours = 1.5 × rate

Test Case:

• 45 hours, rate = 10
• Expected: (40 10) + (5 10 * 1.5) = 400 + 75 = 475

4. Missing else Case

Problem: Salary wrong for hours ≤ 40

Fix:

if (hours > 40)
else

Check: Always test with hours = 30 or 40.

5. Tax Mistake

Problem: Wrong or fixed tax value

Fix:

tax = salary * 0.10;

Check: Tax must depend on salary.

6. Forgetting Final Salary Calculation

Problem: Tax is calculated but not applied

Fix:

final_salary = salary - tax;

Check: Final salary must be lower than salary when tax applies.

7. Wrong Input Order

Problem: Inputs mixed up (hours, rate, name)

Correct Order:

1. Name
2. Hours
3. Rate

8. Assignment vs Comparison Error

Problem:

if (hours = 40)

Fix:

if (hours == 40)

9. Print Statement Error

Problem: Values not shown

Fix:

printf("Salary: %.2f\n", salary);

Check: Always include format specifiers.

10. Floating Point Output

Problem: Long or messy decimals

Fix:

%.2f

Note

• Start with small inputs
• Calculate manually
• Compare with program output
• Isolate the wrong step

Session Recording

If you need to review any part of the explanation while working on your project, you can watch the full recording here: Watch the Session on YouTube

Remember: "Programming isn't just about writing lines of code; it's about the art of solving problems." Can't wait to see what you build!