ALARM(2)            Linux Programmer's Manual            ALARM(2)


NAME
       alarm - set an alarm clock for delivery of a signal

SYNOPSIS
       #include <unistd.h>

       long alarm(long seconds);

DESCRIPTION
       alarm arranges for a SIGALRM signal to be delivered to the
       process in seconds seconds.

       If seconds is zero, no new alarm is scheduled.

       In any event any previously set alarm is cancelled.

RETURN VALUE
       alarm returns the number of seconds  remaining  until  any
       previously  scheduled  alarm  was  due to be delivered, or
       zero if there was no previously scheduled alarm.

NOTES
       alarm and setitimer share the same  timer;  calls  to  one
       will interfere with use of the other.

       Scheduling delays can, as ever, cause the execution of the
       process to be delayed by an arbitrary amount of time.

CONFORMING TO
       SVID, AT&T, POSIX, X/OPEN, BSD 4.3

SEE ALSO

setitimer, signal, sigaction, gettimeofday, select, pause, sleep,

Linux                      21 July 1993                         1