2.5 Programming languages and Integrated Development Environments

Programming languages

Used to write instructions that computers can execute.

High-level languages

Designed for humans to read and write, with instructions similar to structured English.

Low-level languages

Closer to machine code (binary).

Examples of high-level languages

Python, Java, C#.

Advantages of high-level languages

Easy for humans to understand and debug.

Disadvantages of high-level languages

Slower to execute than low-level languages.

Portability of high-level languages

Programs written are portable between different hardware.

Examples of low-level languages

Assembly language, Machine code.

Advantages of low-level languages

Faster and more efficient to execute.

Disadvantages of low-level languages

Hard to read and write.

Translators

Convert programs written in high-level or assembly languages into machine code.

Types of translators

Compilers and interpreters.

Compiler

Translates programs written in high-level languages into machine code, checking for errors before translation.

Interpreter

Translates high-level languages into machine code and executes it line-by-line.

Protection of source code

Compilers protect the source code from extraction, while interpreters offer little protection.

Integrated Development Environment (IDE)

Provides features that make writing code easier.

Features of IDEs

Editors, Auto-indentation, Auto-suggestion, Auto-correction, Colour coding, Line numbers, Debugging tools, Variable tracing.

Error diagnostics in IDEs

Help identify errors made when writing code, highlighting parts of code with issues.

Run-time environments

Allow programs to run on a computer it may not have been designed to run on by creating a virtual machine.

Translators in IDEs

Used to convert high-level languages into machine code.