Chapter Summary

A programming language is an artificial language consisting of a vocabulary and a set of rules used to create instructions for a computer to follow. All languages need to be converted into a language understood by the respective hardware before it can be used by the system. This can be done by a compiler or an interpreter.

The earliest (and lowest-level) programming language, first-generation, is machine language, which consists of instructions using binary numbers0s and 1s. Assembly language, the second generation, is easier to use than machine language because the programmer can use mnemonics to sum up program instructions. High-level languages, third-generation, eliminated the need to understand the details of the processor in use, but these languages still required the programmer to specify the procedure to be followed to solve the problem. Fourth-generation languages freed programmers from having to worry about the problem-solving procedure, but most of these languages, like SQL, are restricted to accessing databases. Fifth-generation languages are focused on the use of natural language to make programming and the use of programs easier.

Object-oriented programming is a popular programming technique based on data being conceptualized as objects and defined by their features (attributes) and behavior (methods). Multiple objects can be assembled into one program or one object can be nested, contained within another. In traditional programming, any change in data meant that all programs using that data needed to be changed. With object-oriented programming, the objects attributes and methods are stored as part of the objects definition, and that definition is passed from program to program as a total package. Any change in the definition is automatically available to any program using that objects definition, with no change in the programs code. Besides saving money and time, objectoriented programming increases testability, reusability, extensibility, and maintainability of the objects and their associated programs.

Languages can be categorized by the design used within their code. Early languages like Basic were called structured and were followed by Fortran and Pascal, which were modular in design. Object-oriented, 3GL programming languages, like C , Java, Ruby, and the .NET suite, work with prebuilt objects and focus more on encapsulating and hiding data. They also allow for easy transfer of features though the use of classes and inheritance.

The six phases of the program development life cycle (PDLC) are (1) defining the problem, (2) designing the program, (3) coding the program, (4) testing and debugging the program, (5) documenting the program, and (6) implementing and maintaining the program. The PDLC is needed because earlier ad hoc programming techniques produced software that was riddled with errors and virtually impossible to debug or maintain.

When using top-down design, program design begins by focusing on the main goal that the program is trying to achieve and then breaking up the program into manageable components. The PDLC focuses on breaking a program into manageable chunks, each of which must be successfully completed before programmers move on to the next phase. This breakdown into subsections makes the program easier to debug and maintain in the future.

When debugging and testing a program, syntax and logic errors can be detected. Syntax errors are flaws in the way a command was written and must be eliminated before a program will run. A logic error is a mistake the programmer made in designing the solution to the problem. Both types of errors are known as bugs, and the process of eliminating them is called debugging.