Why would you precede the main()

function in C with a data type?

#include <stdio.h>
main ()
{
printf ("hello world");
return 0;
}

Why do some precede the main () function with int as in:

int main()

Also, I've seen the word 'void' entered inside the () as in:
int main(void)

It seems like extra typing for nothing, but maybe it's a best practice that pays dividends in
other situations?
Also, why precede main() with an int if you're returning a character string? If anything, one
would expect:
char main(void)

I'm also foggy about why we return 0 at the end of the function.

1 The following has been valid in C89

main() {
return 0;
}

But in modern C (C99), this isn't allowed anymore because you need to explicitly tell the
type of variables and return type of functions, so it becomes
int main() {
return 0;
}

Also, it's legal to omit the return 0 in modern C, so it is legal to write

int main() {

And the behavior is as if it returned 0.

People put void between the parentheses because it ensures proper typechecking for
function calls. An empty set of parentheses in C mean that no information about the amount
and type of the parameters are exposed outside of the function, and the caller has to exactly
know these.
void f();
/* defined as

void f(int a) { } later in a different unit */

int main() {
f("foo");
}
The call to f causes

undefined behavior, because the compiler can't verify the type of the
argument against what f expects in the other modules. If you were to write it with void or
with int, the compiler would know
void f(int); /* only int arguments accepted! */
int main(void) {
f("foo"); /* 'char*' isn't 'int'! */
}
So for main it's just a good habit to put void there since

it's good to do it elsewhere. In C

you are allowed to recursively call main in which case such differences may even matter.
Sadly, only a few compilers support modern C, so on many C compilers you may still get
warnings for using modern C features.
Also, you may see programs to declare main to return different things than int. Such
programs can do that if they use a freestanding C implementation. Such C implementations
do not impose any restrictions on main since they don't even know or require such a
function in the first place. But to have a common and portable interface to the program's
entry point, the C specification requires strictly conforming programs to declare main with
return type int, and require hosted C implementations to accept such programs.
2 The main function returns an integer status code that tells the operating system whether
the program exited successfully.
return 0 indicates success; returning any other value indicates failure.
Since this is an integer and not a string, it returns int, not char or char*. (Calling printf
does not have anything to do with returning from the function)
Older versions of C allow a default return type of int.
However, it's better to explicitly specify the return type.

In C (unlike C++), a function that doesn't take any parameters is declared as int
myFunc(void)

Why do some precede the main () function with int as in:

In C (C 89 anyway, that's the one you seem to be referring to), functions return int by
default when they aren't preceded by any data type. Preceding it with int is ultimately just
a matter of preference.
Also, I've seen the word 'void' entered inside the () as in:
This is also a matter of preference mostly, however these two are quite different:
f(void) means the function f accepts zero arguments,
accepts an unspecified number of arguments.
f(void)

while f() means the function f

is the correct way to declare a function that takes no arguments in C.

It seems like extra typing for nothing, but maybe it's a best practice that pays dividends in
other situations?
The benefit is clarity. If you're going to argue that less typing is good, then what do you
think about naming all of your functions and variables and files and everything with as
few characters as possible?
Also, why precede main() with an int if you're returning a character string? If anything,
one would expect:
char main(void)
What? why in the world would you return a character string from main? There is
absolutely no reason to do this...
Also, your declaration of main return a character, not a character string.
I'm also foggy about why we return 0 at the end of the function.
A program returns a value to the operating system when it ends. That value can be used to
inform the OS about certain things. For example, your virus scanner could return 1 if a
virus was found, 0 if a virus wasn't found and 2 if some error occurred. Usually, 0 means
there was no error and everything went well.
Jonathan Valvano

this is a standard from the old DOS IBM-PC. When the main program finishes it
returns true if it is a normal return, and false for error return, For an embedded
systems we do not return, so it doesn't matter