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Programming Languages

Computer programming languages can be categorized as either low-level or high-level languages. Low-level languages like machine language and assembly language require programmers to explicitly manage a computer's data storage and operations, making them difficult to write and read. High-level languages shield programmers from these low-level details and use notation that is easier for programmers to write and understand. Machine language uses binary codes that directly correspond to a computer's instructions, while assembly language uses mnemonic codes that can be translated into machine language.

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Kimuli Arthur
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48 views

Programming Languages

Computer programming languages can be categorized as either low-level or high-level languages. Low-level languages like machine language and assembly language require programmers to explicitly manage a computer's data storage and operations, making them difficult to write and read. High-level languages shield programmers from these low-level details and use notation that is easier for programmers to write and understand. Machine language uses binary codes that directly correspond to a computer's instructions, while assembly language uses mnemonic codes that can be translated into machine language.

Uploaded by

Kimuli Arthur
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES.

Computer programming language.


WRITTEN BY: 
 David Hemmendinger
See Article History
Computer programming language, any of various languages for
expressing a set of detailed instructions for a digital computer. Such
instructions can be executed directly when they are in the computer
manufacturer-specific numerical form known as machine language,
after a simple substitution process when expressed in a
corresponding assembly language, or after translation from some
“higher-level” language. Although there are many computer languages,
relatively few are widely used.
Machine and assembly languages are “low-level,” requiring a
programmer to manage explicitly all of a
computer’s idiosyncratic features of data storage and operation. In
contrast, high-level languages shield a programmer from worrying
about such considerations and provide a notation that is more easily
written and read by programmers.

Language Types
Machine and assembly languages
A machine language consists of the numeric codes for the operations
that a particular computer can execute directly. The codes are strings
of 0s and 1s, or binary digits (“bits”), which are frequently converted
both from and to hexadecimal (base 16) for human viewing and
modification. Machine language instructions typically use some bits to
represent operations, such as addition, and some to represent
operands, or perhaps the location of the next instruction. Machine
language is difficult to read and write, since it does not resemble
conventional mathematical notation or human language, and its codes
vary from computer to computer.
Assembly language is one level above machine language. It uses
short mnemonic codes for instructions and allows the programmer to
introduce names for blocks of memory that hold data. One might thus
write “add pay, total” instead of “0110101100101000” for an
instruction that adds two numbers.
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Assembly language is designed to be easily translated into machine
language. Although blocks of data may be referred to by name instead
of by their machine addresses, assembly language does not provide
more sophisticated means of organizing complex information. Like
machine language, assembly language requires detailed knowledge of
internal computer architecture. It is useful when such details are
important, as in programming a computer to interact
with input/output devices (printers, scanners, storage devices, and so
forth).
Assembler is a program that converts assembly level language (low level language) into
machine level language. Compiler compiles entire C source code into machine code.
Whereas, interpreters converts source code into intermediate code and then this intermediate
code is executed line by line.

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