Computers and Programming@ Lecture
Programming Language
1
Why Program?
Program – instructions in computer memory to
make it do something
Programmer – person who writes instructions
(programs) to make computer perform a task
SO, without programmers, no programs; without
programs, a computer cannot do anything
Main Hardware Component Categories:
1. Central Processing Unit (CPU)
2. Main Memory
3. Secondary Memory / Storage
4. Input Devices
5. Output Devices
Main Hardware Component Categories
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
Comprised of:
Control Unit
Fetch and decodes program instructions
Coordinates activities of all other parts of computer
Arithmetic & Logic Unit
Hardware for high-speed numeric calculation
CPU Organization
Main Memory
• It is volatile. Main memory is erased when
program terminates or computer is turned off
• Also called Random Access Memory (RAM)
• Organized as follows:
– bit: smallest piece of memory.
– byte: 8 consecutive bits. Bytes have addresses.
Main Memory
• Addresses – Each byte in memory is identified by
a unique number known as an address.
Main Memory
• In Figure, the number 149 is stored in the byte
with the address 16, and the number 72 is stored
at address 23.
Secondary Storage
• Non-volatile: data retained when program is not
running or computer is turned off
• Comes in a variety of media:
– magnetic: hard drive
– optical: CD-ROM, DVD
– Flash drives, connected to the USB port
Input Devices
• Devices that send information to the computer
from outside
• Many devices can provide input:
– Keyboard, mouse, scanner, digital camera, microphone
Software-Programs That Run on a Computer
• Categories of software:
– System software: programs that manage the computer
hardware and the programs that run on them.
Examples: operating systems, utility programs,
software development tools
– Application software: programs that provide services
to the user. Examples : word processing, games,
programs to solve specific problems
Programs and Programming Languages
• A program is a set of instructions that the
computer follows to perform a task
A programming language is a computer language
that is used by programmers (developers) to
communicate with computers.
• It is a set of instructions written in any specific
language ( C, C++, Java, Python) to perform a
specific task.
Machine Language
• The computer only executes machine language
instructions
• Machine language instructions are binary numbers,
such as
1011010000000101
• Rather than writing programs in machine language,
programmers use programming languages.
Programs and Programming Languages
• Types of languages:
– Low-level: used for communication
with computer hardware directly.
Often written in binary machine
code (0’s/1’s) directly.
– High-level: closer to human
language
Some Well-Known Programming Languages
C++
BASIC Ruby
FORTRAN
Java
Visual Basic
COBOL
C#
JavaScript
C Python
From a High-Level Program to an Executable
File
a) Create file containing the program with a text editor.
b) Run preprocessor to convert source file directives to
source code program statements.
c) Run compiler to convert source program into machine
instructions.
d) Run linker to connect hardware-specific code to machine
instructions, producing an executable file.
• Steps b–d are often performed by a single command or
button click.
• Errors detected at any step will prevent execution of
following steps.
From a High-Level Program to an Executable
File
Integrated Development Environments (IDEs)
• An integrated development environment, or IDE,
combine all the tools needed to write, compile,
and debug a program into a single software
application.
• Examples are Code blocks, Microsoft Visual C++,
Turbo C++ Explorer, CodeWarrior, etc.
Integrated Development Environments (IDEs)
What is a Program Made of?
• Common elements in programming languages:
– Key Words
– Programmer-Defined Identifiers
– Operators
– Punctuation
– Syntax
Program
Key Words
• Also known as reserved words
• Have a special meaning in C++
• Can not be used for any other purpose
• Key words in the Program : using, namespace,
int, double, and return
Key Words
Programmer-Defined Identifiers
• Names made up by the programmer
• Not part of the C++ language
• Used to represent various things: variables
(memory locations), functions, etc.
• In Program 1-1: hours, rate, and pay.
Operators
• Used to perform operations on data
• Many types of operators:
– Arithmetic - ex: +,-,*,/
– Assignment - ex: =
• Some operators in Program:
<< >> = *
Punctuation
• Characters that mark the end of a statement, or
that separate items in a list
Punctuation
Syntax
• The rules of grammar that must be followed when
writing a program
• Controls the use of key words, operators,
programmer-defined symbols, and punctuation
Variables
• A variable is a named storage location in the
computer’s memory for holding a piece of data.
• we used three variables:
– The hours variable was used to hold the hours
worked
– The rate variable was used to hold the pay rate
– The pay variable was used to hold the gross pay
Variable Definitions
• To create a variable in a program you must write a
variable definition (also called a variable
declaration)
• Here is the statement from Program that defines
the variables:
double hours, rate, pay;
Variable Definitions
• There are many different types of data, which you
will learn about in this course.
• A variable holds a specific type of data.
• The variable definition specifies the type of data a
variable can hold, and the variable name.
Variable Definitions
double hours, rate, pay;
• The word double specifies that the variables can
hold double-precision floating point numbers.
