Лекция: VII. PROGRAMS AND PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES

Computers can deal with different kinds of problems if they are given the right instructions for what to do. Instructions are first written in one of the high-level languages, e.g. FORTRAN, COBOL, ALGOL, PL/I, PASCAL, BASIC, or C, depending on the type of problem to be solved. A program written in one of these languages is often called a source program, and it cannot be directly processed by the computer until it has been compiled, which means interpreted into machine code. Usually a single instruction written in a high-level language, when transformed into machine code, results in several instructions. Here is a brief description of some of the many high-level languages:

FORTRAN acronym for FORmula TRANslation. This language is used for solving scientific and mathematical problems. It consists of algebraic formulae and English phrases. It was first introduced in the United States in 1954.

COBOL acronym for COmmon Business-Oriented Language. This language is used for commercial purposes. COBOL, which is written using English statements, deals with problems that do not involvea lot ofmathematical calculations. It was first introduced in 1959.

ALGOL acronym for ALGOrithmic Language. Originally called IAL,

which means International Algebraic Language. It is used for

mathematical and scientific purposes. ALGOL was first introduced in Europe in 1960.

PL/I Programming Language I. Developed in 1964 to combine

features of COBOL and ALGOL. Consequently, it is used for data processing as well as scientific applications.

BASIC acronym for Beginner's All-purpose Symbolic Instruction