The current state of development of society is characterized by a sharp increase in information flows not only in the media but also in the field of production, science, and culture. If until recently the degree of development of society was defined by the degree of its industrialization, today it is determined by the degree of informatization.
In such an important area of human activity as production, numerically controlled machines, flexible automated systems, automated lines, robotic systems are widely used. Computer technologies are being intensively introduced both in traditional industries (mechanical engineering, instrument making, metalworking, etc.) and in new ones, the emergence of which is impossible to imagine without computer technology. Information technologies are applied in banking and office activities. Computers are also penetrating the sphere of management, starting from the state level and ending with the level of the city and the village.
Therefore, the high level of informatization of all human activity spheres and, first of all, the sphere of production, places higher demands on the training of specialists. The computer is becoming an integral part of many jobs. Fortunately, today there are professionals who are ready to offer students computer programming homework help like a team of experts from AssignmentCore who offer online help with coding assignments 24/7. This allows young people to receive real assistance in case of difficulties in the course of training.
In this article, it seems appropriate to consider the fundamentals of computer programming and information technology. Read this article to the end if you find this information useful.
The Concept of Information
Computer science (informatics) is the science of information and information processes in nature and society, methods and means of organization, receipt, storage, processing, transportation of information, and management of information processes. Information is the basic concept of computer science. This is one of the fundamental concepts, so there is no strict definition. Information is understood as facts, messages, concepts, theoretical provisions that reduce the initial uncertainty about the objects of the material world. Productive information processing has increased dramatically since the invention of computers.
The Role of Computers
Nowadays, the computer is considered the main technical means of information processing. The work of the computer is based on the following principles:
- The principle of software control. This principle is determined by the fact that the solution of problems on the computer is carried out automatically, under the control of the program;
- The principle of the program stored in computer memory in the form of numbers. Input and output data are processed in the same way as numbers by the same devices;
- The principle of addressability consists in the fact that the input data and programs for their processing are stored in memory at certain addresses, which greatly facilitates the operation of computer devices.
A computer is a complex technical device. The means of which it consists can be divided into two parts:
- Hardware, which includes various technical devices, components, mechanisms, elements;
- Software, which includes a set of various programs.
Algorithms and Programming Languages
The computer is controlled according to some algorithms. The algorithm is understood as a certain description of the method of solving the problem in the form of a final (in time) sequence of actions. Programming languages are used to represent algorithms in a way that the computer understands. First, an action algorithm is developed, then it is written in one of these languages. The result is the text of the program – a complete and detailed description of the algorithm in the programming language. The text of the program is transferred into machine code or performed under special management utilities, called translators.
However, it is rather difficult to write the program in the machine code, and complexity sharply is growing with the increase in the size of the program and complexity of the decision of the necessary task. Conventionally, we can assume that machine code is acceptable if the size of the program does not exceed a few tens of bytes and there is no need for manual input/output.
Levels of Programming Languages
Different types of processors have different sets of instructions. If the programming language is focused on a specific type of processor and takes into account its features, it is called a low-level programming language. In this case, ‘low’ does not mean ‘bad’. The language operators are close to machine code and focused on specific processor commands. Low-level languages include Assembler languages. In Assembler, binary command codes are written in names that are much easier to remember. Instead of a sequence of binary codes of commands, their symbolic names are written, and instead of binary data addresses – symbolic names of this data.
High-level programming languages are closer and clearer to the person. Features of specific computer architectures are not taken into account here, therefore, the created programs at the level of source texts are easily transferred to other platforms for which the translator of this language is created. It is easier to develop programs in high-level languages with the help of clear and powerful commands, and errors in creating programs are much less.
List of High-Level Programming Languages
Here is a list of widely used high-level programming languages:
- Fortran;
- Cobol;
- Algol;
- Pascal;
- Basic;
- Java, etc.
Summarizing all of the above, we should indicate that for each of these programming languages today there are many programming systems produced by different companies and focused on different PC models and operating systems.
