What, Why Programming
Why Programming?
You may already have used software, perhaps for word processing or spreadsheets, to solve problems. Perhaps now you are curious to learn how programmers write software. A program is a set of step-by-step instructions that directs the computer to do the tasks you want it to do and produce the results you want.
There are at least three good reasons for learning programming:
Learning programming lets you find out quickly whether you like programming and whether you have the analytical turn of mind programmers need. Even if you decide that programming is not for you, understanding the process certainly will increase your appreciation of what programmers and computers can do.
An important point before we proceed: You will not be a programmer when you finish reading this chapter or even when you finish reading the final chapter. Programming proficiency takes practice and training beyond the scope of this book. However, you will become acquainted with how programmers develop solutions to a variety of problems.
You may already have used software, perhaps for word processing or spreadsheets, to solve problems. Perhaps now you are curious to learn how programmers write software. A program is a set of step-by-step instructions that directs the computer to do the tasks you want it to do and produce the results you want.
There are at least three good reasons for learning programming:
Learning programming lets you find out quickly whether you like programming and whether you have the analytical turn of mind programmers need. Even if you decide that programming is not for you, understanding the process certainly will increase your appreciation of what programmers and computers can do.
An important point before we proceed: You will not be a programmer when you finish reading this chapter or even when you finish reading the final chapter. Programming proficiency takes practice and training beyond the scope of this book. However, you will become acquainted with how programmers develop solutions to a variety of problems.
Free Programming Codes Cheat:
What Programmers Life
The programming activities just described could be done, perhaps, as solo activities, but a programmer typically interacts with a variety of people. For example, if a program is part of a system of several programs, the programmer coordinates with other programmers to make sure that the programs fit together well. If you were a programmer, you might also have coordination meetings with users, managers, systems analysts, and with peers who evaluate your work-just as you evaluate theirs.
Let us turn to the programming process.
The Programming Process
Developing a program involves steps similar to any problem-solving task. There are five main ingredients in the programming process:
- Defining the problem
- Planning the solution
- Coding the program
- Testing the program
- Documenting the program
- Let us discuss each of these in turn.
Defining the Problem
Suppose that, as a programmer, you are contacted because your services are needed. You meet with users from the client organization to analyze the problem, or you meet with a systems analyst who outlines the project. Specifically, the task of defining the problem consists of identifying what it is you know (input-given data), and what it is you want to obtain (output-the result). Eventually, you produce a written agreement that, among other things, specifies the kind of input, processing, and output required. This is not a simple process.
Planning the Solution
Two common ways of planning the solution to a problem are to draw a flowchart and to write pseudocode, or possibly both. Essentially, a flowchart is a pictorial representation of a step-by-step solution to a problem. It consists of arrows representing the direction the program takes and boxes and other symbols representing actions. It is a map of what your program is going to do and how it is going to do it. The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has developed a standard set of flowchart symbols. Figure 1 shows the symbols and how they might be used in a simple flowchart of a common every day act-preparing a letter for mailing.
Pseudocode is an English-like nonstandard language that lets you state your solution with more precision than you can in plain English but with less precision than is required when using a formal programming language. Pseudocode permits you to focus on the program logic without having to be concerned just yet about the precise syntax of a particular programming language. However, pseudocode is not executable on the computer. We will illustrate these later in this chapter, when we focus on language examples.
Coding the Program
As the programmer, your next step is to code the program-that is, to express your solution in a programming language. You will translate the logic from the flowchart or pseudocode-or some other tool-to a programming language. As we have already noted, a programming language is a set of rules that provides a way of instructing the computer what operations to perform. There are many programming languages: BASIC, COBOL, Pascal, FORTRAN, and C are some examples. You may find yourself working with one or more of these. We will discuss the different types of languages in detail later in this chapter.
Testing the Program
Some experts insist that a well-designed program can be written correctly the first time. In fact, they assert that there are mathematical ways to prove that a program is correct. However, the imperfections of the world are still with us, so most programmers get used to the idea that their newly written programs probably have a few errors. This is a bit discouraging at first, since programmers tend to be precise, careful, detail-oriented people who take pride in their work. Still, there are many opportunities to introduce mistakes into programs, and you, just as those who have gone before you, will probably find several of them.
Eventually, after coding the program, you must prepare to test it on the computer. This step involves these phases:
- Desk-checking. This phase, similar to proofreading, is sometimes avoided by the programmer who is looking for a shortcut and is eager to run the program on the computer once it is written. However, with careful desk-checking you may discover several errors and possibly save yourself time in the long run. In desk-checking you simply sit down and mentally trace, or check, the logic of the program to attempt to ensure that it is error-free and workable. Many organizations take this phase a step further with a walkthrough, a process in which a group of programmers-your peers-review your program and offer suggestions in a collegial way.
- Translating. A translator is a program that (1) checks the syntax of your program to make sure the programming language was used correctly, giving you all the syntax-error messages, called diagnostics, and (2) then translates your program into a form the computer can understand. A by-product of the process is that the translator tells you if you have improperly used the programming language in some way. These types of mistakes are called syntax errors. The translator produces descriptive error messages. For instance, if in FORTRAN you mistakenly write N=2 *(I+J))-which has two closing parentheses instead of one-you will get a message that says, "UNMATCHED PARENTHESES." (Different translators may provide different wording for error messages.) Programs are most commonly translated by a compiler. A compiler translates your entire program at one time. The translation involves your original program, called a source module, which is transformed by a compiler into an object module. Prewritten programs from a system library may be added during the link/load phase, which results in a load module. The load module can then be executed by the computer.
- Debugging. A term used extensively in programming, debugging means detecting, locating, and correcting bugs (mistakes), usually by running the program. These bugs are logic errors, such as telling a computer to repeat an operation but not telling it how to stop repeating. In this phase you run the program using test data that you devise. You must plan the test data carefully to make sure you test every part of the program.
Documenting the Program
Documenting is an ongoing, necessary process, although, as many programmers are, you may be eager to pursue more exciting computer-centered activities. Documentation is a written detailed description of the programming cycle and specific facts about the program. Typical program documentation materials include the origin and nature of the problem, a brief narrative description of the program, logic tools such as flowcharts and pseudocode, data-record descriptions, program listings, and testing results. Comments in the program itself are also considered an essential part of documentation. Many programmers document as they code. In a broader sense, program documentation can be part of the documentation for an entire system.
Programming as a Career
There is a shortage of qualified personnel in the computer field. Before you join their ranks, consider the advantages of the computer field and what it takes to succeed in it.
The Joys of the Field
Although many people make career changes into the computer field, few choose to leave it. In fact, surveys of computer professionals, especially programmers, consistently report a high level of job satisfaction. There are several reasons for this contentment. One is the challenge-most jobs in the computer industry are not routine. Another is security, since established computer professionals can usually find work. And that work pays well-you will probably not be rich, but you should be comfortable. The computer industry has historically been a rewarding place for women and minorities. And, finally, the industry holds endless fascination since it is always changing.
What It Takes
You need, of course, some credentials, most often a two- or four-year degree in computer information systems or computer science. The requirements and salaries vary by the organization and the region, so we will not dwell on these here. Beyond that, the person most likely to land a job and move up the career ladder is the one with excellent communication skills, both oral and written . These are also the qualities that can be observed by potential employers in an interview. Promotions are sometimes tied to advanced degrees (an M.B.A. or an M.S. in computer science).
Open Doors
The overall outlook for the computer field is promising. The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows, through the year 2010, a 72 percent increase in programmers and a 69 percent increase in system use today, and we will discuss the most popular ones later In the chapter. Before we turn to specific languages, however, we need to discuss levels of language.
Levels of Language
Programming languages are said to be "lower" or "higher," depending on how close they are to the language the computer itself uses (Os and 1s = low) or to the language people use (more English-like-high). We will consider five levels of language. They are numbered 1 through 5 to correspond to levels, or generations. In terms of ease of use and capabilities, each generation is an improvement over its predecessors. The five generations of languages are
- Machine language
- Assembly languages
- High-level languages
- Very high-level languages
- Natural languages
Let us look at each of these categories.
Machine Language
Humans do not like to deal in numbers alone-they prefer letters and words. But, strictly speaking, numbers are what machine language is. This lowest level of language, machine language, represents data and program instructions as 1s and Os-binary digits corresponding to the on and off electrical states in the computer. Each type of computer has its own machine language. In the early days of computing, programmers had rudimentary systems for combining numbers to represent instructions such as add and compare. Primitive by today's standards, the programs were not convenient for people to read and use. The computer industry quickly moved to develop assembly languages.
Assembly Languages
Today, assembly languages are considered very low level-that is, they are not as convenient for people to use as more recent languages. The programmer who uses an assembly language requires a translator to convert the assembly language program into machine language. A translator is needed because machine language is the only language the computer can actually execute. The translator is an assembler program, also referred to as an assembler. It takes the programs written in assembly language and turns them into machine language. Programmers need not worry about the translating aspect; they need only write programs in assembly language. The translation is taken care of by the assembler.
Although assembly languages represent a step forward, they still have many disadvantages. A key disadvantage is that assembly language is detailed in the extreme, making assembly programming repetitive, tedious, and error prone. This drawback is apparent in the program in Figure 2. Assembly language may be easier to read than machine language, but it is still tedious.
High-Level Languages
The first widespread use of high-level languages in the early 1960s transformed programming into something quite different from what it had been. Programs were written in an English-like manner, thus making them more convenient to use. As a result, a programmer could accomplish more with less effort, and programs could now direct much more complex tasks.
Some languages are created to serve a specific purpose, such as controlling industrial robots or creating graphics. Many languages, however, are extraordinarily flexible and are considered to be general-purpose. In the past the majority of programming applications were written in BASIC, FORTRAN, or COBOL-all general-purpose languages. In addition to these three, another popular high-level language is C, which we will discuss later.
Very High-Level Languages
Languages called very high-level languages are often known by their generation number, that is, they are called fourth-generation languages or, more simply, 4GLs.
Definition
Will the real fourth-generation languages please stand up? There is no consensus about what constitutes a fourth-generation language. The 4GLs are essentially shorthand programming languages. An operation that requires hundreds of lines in a third-generation language such as COBOL typically requires only five to ten lines in a 4GL. However, beyond the basic criterion of conciseness, 4GLs are difficult to describe.
Characteristics
Fourth-generation languages share some characteristics. The first is that they make a true break with the prior generation-they are basically non-procedural. A procedural language tells the computer how a task is done: Add this, compare that, do this if something is true, and so forth-a very specific step-by-step process. The first three generations of languages are all procedural. In a nonprocedural language, the concept changes. Here, users define only what they want the computer to do; the user does not provide the details of just how it is to be done. Obviously, it is a lot easier and faster just to say what you want rather than how to get it. This leads us to the issue of productivity, a key characteristic of fourth-generation languages.
Productivity
Folklore has it that fourth-generation languages can improve productivity by a factor of 5 to 50. The folklore is true. Most experts say the average improvement factor is about 10-that is, you can be ten times more productive in a fourth-generation language than in a third-generation language. Consider this request: Produce a report showing the total units sold for each product, by customer, in each month and year, and with a subtotal for each customer. In addition, each new customer must start on a new page. A 4GL request looks something like this:
TABLE FILE SALES
SUM UNITS BY MONTH BY CUSTOMER BY PRODUCT
ON CUSTOMER SUBTOTAL PAGE BREAK
END
Even though some training is required to do even this much, you can see that it is pretty simple. The third-generation language COBOL, however, typically requires over 500 statements to fulfill the same request. If we define productivity as producing equivalent results in less time, then fourth-generation languages clearly increase productivity.
Downside
Fourth-generation languages are not all peaches and cream and productivity. The 4GLs are still evolving, and that which is still evolving cannot be fully defined or standardized. What is more, since many 4GLs are easy to use, they attract a large number of new users, who may then overcrowd the computer system. One of the main criticisms is that the new languages lack the necessary control and flexibility when it comes to planning how you want the output to look. A common perception of 4GLs is that they do not make efficient use of machine resources; however, the benefits of getting a program finished more quickly can far outweigh the extra costs of running it.
Benefits
- Fourth-generation languages are beneficial because
- They are results-oriented; they emphasize what instead of how.
- They improve productivity because programs are easy to write and change.
- They can be used with a minimum of training by both programmers and nonprogrammers.
- They shield users from needing an awareness of hardware and program structure.
It was not long ago that few people believed that 4GLs would ever be able to replace third-generation languages. These 4GL languages are being used, but in a very limited way.
Query Languages
A variation on fourth-generation languages are query languages, which can be used to retrieve information from databases. Data is usually added to databases according to a plan, and planned reports may also be produced. But what about a user who needs an unscheduled report or a report that differs somehow from the standard reports? A user can learn a query language fairly easily and then be able to input a request and receive the resulting report right on his or her own terminal or personal computer. A standardized query language, which can be used with several different commercial database programs, is Structured Query Language, popularly known as SQL. Other popular query languages are Query-by-Example, known as QBE, and Intellect.
Natural Languages
Natural languages are sometimes referred to as knowledge-based languages, because natural languages are used to interact with a base of knowledge on some subject. The use of a natural language to access a knowledge base is called a knowledge-based system.
Consider this request that could be given in the 4GL Focus: "SUM ORDERS BY DATE BY REGION." If we alter the request and, still in Focus, say something like "Give me the dates and the regions after you've added up the orders," the computer will spit back the user-friendly version of "You've got to be kidding" and give up. But some natural languages can handle such a request. Users can relax the structure of their requests and increase the freedom of their interaction with the data.
Here is a typical natural language request:
REPORT THE BASE SALARY, COMMISSIONS AND YEARS OF
SERVICE BROKEN DOWN BY STATE AND CITY FOR SALESCLERKS
IN NEW JERSEY AND MASSACHUSETTS.
You can hardly get closer to conversational English than that.
An example of a natural language is shown in Figure 3. Natural languages excel at easy data access. Indeed, the most common application for natural languages is interacting with databases.
Choosing a Language
How do you choose the language with which to write your program?
There are several possibilities:
- In a work environment, your manager may decree that everyone on your project will use a certain language.
- You may use a certain language, particularly in a business environment, based on the need to interface with other programs; if two programs are to work together, it is easiest if they are written in the same language.
- You may choose a language based on its suitability for the task. For example, a business program that handles large files may be best written in the business language COBOL.
- If a program is to be run on different computers, it must be written in a language that is portable-suitable on each type of computer-so that the program need be written only once.
- You may be limited by the availability of the language. Not all languages are available in all installations or on all computers.
- The language may be limited to the expertise of the programmer; that is, the program may have to be written in a language the available programmer knows.
- Perhaps the simplest reason, one that applies to many amateur programmers, is that they know the language called BASIC because it came with-or was inexpensively purchased with-their personal computers.
Major Programming Languages
The following sections on individual languages will give you an overview of the third-generation languages in common use today: FORTRAN (a scientific language), COBOL (a business language), BASIC (simple language used for education and business), Pascal (education), Ada (military), and C (general purposed).
This chapter will present programs written in some of these languages. You will also see output produced by each program. Each program is designed to find the average of three numbers; the resulting average is shown in the sample output matching each program. Since all programs perform the same task, you will see some of the differences and similarities among the languages. We do not expect you to understand these programs; they are here merely to let you glimpse each language. Figure 4 presents the flowchart and pseudocode for the task of averaging numbers. As we discuss each language, we will
