Classifying programming languages and translators

• What do high-level languages allow programmers to do?

  Write instructions in an easier language
• What is the role of translators in programming?

  Translate high-level languages into machine code
• What are the characteristics of high-level languages?

  • Easier to understand than low-level languages
  • Closer to natural language
  • Require translation into machine code
• What is machine code?

  Low-level language directly understood by CPU
• How is machine code represented?

  As a series of binary numbers
• What is binary?

  A number system with two symbols, 0 and 1
• Why do programmers find machine code difficult?

  It is hard to learn, program, and debug
• What are programs in programming?

  Sequences of instructions for a computer
• What is a high-level programming language?

  A language used to write computer programs
• What do high-level languages need to be translated into?

  Machine code through a compiler or interpreter
• What do high-level languages allow programmers to focus on?

  What needs to be done, not how
• What are common high-level programming languages?

  • Python
  • Java
  • C++
  • C#
  • Visual Basic
  • JavaScript
• What is source code?

  Instructions written in a programming language
• What must source code be translated into?

  Machine code for execution by a computer
• What do high-level languages allow programmers to do?

  Write instructions in an easier language
• What is the role of translators in programming?

  Translate high-level languages into machine code
• What are low-level languages?

  • Programming languages closely representing machine language
  • More difficult to understand than high-level languages
  • Execute quicker than high-level languages
• What is machine code?

  Low-level language directly understood by the CPU
• How is machine code represented?

  By binary numbers consisting of 0s and 1s
• Why is machine code difficult to write and debug?

  It consists of thousands of 0s and 1s
• What does assembly language use to represent instructions?

  Mnemonics that correspond to machine code
• How does assembly language compare to high-level languages?

  It is easier to understand than machine code
• What are the benefits of using mnemonics in assembly language?

  • Easier to understand and debug
  • Brief representations of actual commands
  • Quicker to write than binary
  • Easier to spot mistakes
• What is the Little Man Computer (LMC)?

  A simulation of a basic processor
• What architecture does the Little Man Computer use?

  Von Neumann architecture
• What are opcodes in machine code and assembly instructions?

  Operation codes specifying executable instructions
• What is an operand in programming?

  Data manipulated by the CPU according to opcode
• What are the components of a program instruction in assembly language?

  • Opcode: Specifies the instruction
  • Operand: Data manipulated by the instruction
• How are opcode and operand values represented?

  Both are ultimately represented in binary
• Why is hexadecimal used in programming?

  It represents larger values in fewer characters
• What is the hexadecimal representation of the decimal number 250?

  FA
• What is the difference between denary and binary?

  • Denary: Base 10, digits 0-9
  • Binary: Base 2, digits 0 and 1
• What is the significance of the stored program concept?

  • Programs stored in memory as instructions
  • Executed sequentially using ALU, control unit, and registers
• What do high-level languages allow programmers to do?

  Write instructions in an easier language
• What is the role of translators in programming?

  Translate high-level languages into machine code
• What is source code?

  The code behind a computer program
• Why must source code be translated?

  Computers cannot understand source code directly
• What are the three types of translators?

  Interpreter, compiler, and assembler
• What does a compiler do?

  Translates high-level languages into machine code
• What is the process called when a compiler translates code?

  Compilation