Computer programming has become an important field in today’s times. Many students prefer to make a career in the field of computer programming. It plays a crucial role in the world of computers and is an ever-expanding field.
It has become a cornerstone of digital advancement and innovative programs which are a testament to human potential.
Definition of computer programming
It is defined as the process of designing and building a computer program to carry out a particular task.
In addition to this, it can also be a method of writing a specific source code to be understood and interpreted by the computer.
The instructions which are fed to a computer in a certain language are termed as computer programming. There must be a medium between the programmer and the computer to interact which can lead to the creation of different software and applications.
Types of Computer Programming Languages
There are numerous programming languages which hone computer skills and make a person adept with technology.
These have different purposes as they are designed keeping in mind the requirements of the particular field such as business, education and web development.
- JAVA
JAVA is a highly used programming language which was the brainchild of Sun Microsystems. It consists of a variety of codes, algorithms and commands. It is a famous language which is used for developing mobile applications.
- Logo
It was a programming language developed to teach mathematical concepts and develop analytical skills among students. It happens to be comprehensible and widely used.
- Basic
It stands for Beginners All-Purpose Symbolic Instruction Code. It had simple data structures which could be learnt by a novice in the field of computer science. Interestingly, it was a popular language for personal computers.
- PostScript
It was a document formatting language which was developed by Adobe Systems. A person using postscript can precisely position text in various fonts and sizes and also draw a variety of images.
- HTML
It is a World Wide Web display language which makes the information displayed on the internet comprehensible.
- C++
It is used in game development, advanced computations and graphics compilers.
- COBOL
It is used widely in numerous businesses and has an English notation. It has a record data structure which helps businesses to organize and manage their data.
- Hyper talk
It was an education-oriented language which helped anyone to combine text and graphics. Moreover, it was widely used by classroom educators for multimedia presentations.
Reasons to learn the computer programming language
- Specialized language
The computer programming language is termed as a high-level understanding language because it can be easily comprehended and is produced by minimal human effort. The language is well-organized and helps a person to digitalize his/her ideas.
- Replete with rules
This language is beset with rules regarding the procedures and the instructions to be written for the programme.
In the computer-based language, these rules are referred to as syntax. Once a program has been written, these high-level instructions are translated into codes for the computer to understand.
- Money minting business
Being a computer programmer can help a person earn loads of money and solve software issues which is considered a good skill.
- Develop coding literacy
Knowing codes can help a person understand aspects of information technology. It can create several job opportunities for a person leading to various inventions in the field of computers.
Features of computer programming
It is an artificial language and is made up of algorithms to make computing possible through computers. These languages allow the manipulation of data structures and affect the program execution.
Every language consists of its primitives. It must be simple and easy to understand. These make use of the English language which happens to an easy language known by a large chunk of people.
The Graphic User Interface of the language must be appealing. It should have a user-friendly interface. Moreover, it must be designed in a way which can be easily operated on all computer systems.
Classification of programming languages
There are mainly two levels of classification of languages which are High-Level Language and Low-level Language.
High-Level languages are similar to human languages which are programmer friendly and easy to code. These focus more on the complex arithmetic operation and optimal program efficiency.
On the other hand, low-level languages are close to the machine level instruction set. These are used for operating device drivers, databases and operating systems.
Types of programming tools
There are various tools which determine the quality of the programming language. Programming tools comprise of a compiler and an interpreter.
A compiler is a set of programs that converts the source code which is written in a high-level language to a low-level language.
Instructions to the compiler are provided in the form of a binary language. It pre-processes the source code and translates it into an intermediate code. Visual Basic, GCC and Quick Basic are some well-known examples of compilers.
Talking about interpreters, these convert source codes into machine codes. The need for an interpreter arises when a compiler fails to perform certain software development needs.
Types of programming errors
There are several errors which occur while coding. These are enumerated as follows-
- Compilation/Syntax Error
This is referred to as the typing errors or the mistakes at the syntactical level. These errors prevent the program from running smoothly.
- Runtime Error
This error arises when there is an abnormal behaviour or termination of the program. It is so called because the program performs an operation which is impossible to execute.
- Logical Error
These errors cannot be debugged easily as they are the result of undesired operations.
Importance of computer programming
Computer programming has an undeniable importance in all fields. It is essential to create innovative solutions for global problems. It increases the power of computers and makes the internet more accessible.
Moreover, it speeds up the input and output processes in a machine. It is important to collect, manage, organize and assimilate data.
With the help of computer programming, a person can create a variety of applications and software which are helpful to computer users.
The robotic development and the large-scale innovations in the field of artificial intelligence are possible through programming.
It develops an inter-communication among various computer networks. It helps computer systems function to their utmost capacity without any technical glitches.
In addition to this, programming is a platform to showcase one’s creativity and give a glimpse of a person’s genius.
Programmers develop video games, graphics and animation to help businesses flourish. These computer applications are also a source of recreation and entertainment for the masses.
With the help of educational languages, the process of acquiring knowledge and online learning has become possible. This has also lead to various distance-learning programs.
In today’s times, most of the educational institutions have online learning forums which are a boon of computer programming.
An extensive use of programming language has defined the future. It would be the era in which artificial intelligence and virtual reality would exist.
Interestingly, programming has allowed people to represent machine language in a human-readable format. This has left no room for errors and it saves time in debugging and correcting mistakes.
It has developed the ways for programmers to understand the nitty-gritty of machines and communicate with them in a better way.
Steps to master Programming Languages
In order to become adept at computer programming, there are some tricks which hone the skills. These are elaborated upon below:
- Thorough understanding of Object Oriented Programming Principles
One must know the basic principles and have a strong understanding of certain concepts. Deep knowledge about Object Modelling, Inheritance, Class, Encapsulation, Abstraction, Polymorphism and Design Patterns is a must.
- Develop the habit of coding regularly
The best way to keep one’s computer knowledge intact is by coding regularly. One would know about language limitations and would be able to design best practices by coding.
One must work sincerely to hone the coding skills by practising online coding tutorials. Moreover, a deep insight into methods helps save time and reuse codes without typing them again.
Being acquainted with the functions of a modifier, return type, method name, parameter list, exception list and method body helps in forming codes properly.
It is advisable to code 2-3 hrs per day for perfection in a programming language. In order to ace the task, one must participate in different coding challenges.
- Subscribe to technology forums and follow blogs
A way to keep abreast with all the latest developments and innovations is to subscribe to a forum.
A technology forum would be able to guide a person and provide the best advice to help in better understanding of the coding and programming process.
Asking questions and providing answers is a way to brush up knowledge and know more about other things.
Following blogs and discovering different perspectives about the technology on other blogs provide an insight into things.
- A careful study of source codes
Studying source codes of various successful frameworks would help in chiselling the knowledge and technical know-how.
Knowing about the internal working mechanisms and developing new practices would help immensely.
- Strengthen the basics
Other works like strengthening the basics and reading the latest researched documents can help a lot to get a hang of the language.
Moreover, undertaking computer programming language courses and online video courses would hone the skills and develop confidence. The language is easy to learn and is possible even for the learners with an irregular learning graph.
The minimum magic characters with an English syntax accomplish tasks. Various certification courses and accredited short term diplomas help gain perspective and acquire the desired set of skills.
Seeking online tutorials and knowing the ABC of the language goes a long way. Some popular tutorials are javaTpoint, Tutorialspoint and Java Code Geeks.
It takes years to master the language. One must work at his/her pace and not rush things up.
A person must familiarize himself/herself to the comments, data types, syntax, variables, keywords, operators, decision making control statements, loops of the programming language.
Knowing the function of each component is mandatory as it builds the foundation of worthwhile Java experience.
Also having a proper understanding of C/C++ helps in understanding the basics of the language.
It is an important task to know the pulse of the audience which comprises of software developers, project managers and team leaders.
- Create dynamic and worthwhile content
Another effective way to become a deft programmer is to have a thorough understanding of the language and create authentic content. Using Server faces and Servlets help create worthwhile web content.
- Create an interface and other multifaceted facilities
Creating multi-dimensional data storage arrays helps to manage work. Enabling multi-threading for faster data reading and being able to do multiple tasks at one time helps develop the programme.
It is important when dealing with multi-media and web applications. An interesting feature is that it does not occupy memory for any thread. There is a common memory area for all of them.
To sum it up, computer programming happens to be an important aspect of our lives. It helps to develop new programs and applications beneficial for the masses. The humungous field is developed by skilled programmers which bear testimony to the human potential. A variety of computer programming languages are used in different areas which is a result of human expertise.
Author Bio:
Marlon Brando happens to be a writer par excellence with an impeccable knowledge of computer science and programming. His prolific understanding of programming concepts and ideas makes him highly revered among his peers. His research sensibilities bear testimony to his creative genius. He knows the basics of computer science like the back of his hand. Moreover, he has passed out from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Computer Science with an MS Degree. His research papers are widely admired by scholars and professionals for outstanding details and well-worded information.