Introduction to Scripting

Objectives

Introduction to Scripting and Programming

• origins of programming languages were created in the 1950s.

• punch cards were used in the 1800s to create complex patterns in woven textiles.

• first mechanical calculators were created in the nineteenth century using basic programming concepts like logic and looping.

• the first computer was created in the 1950s and used programming languages such as FORTRAN and COBOL.

• most programming languages take advantage of basic programming concepts such as variables, conditional statements, and looping.

• IBM first introduced Job Control Language (JCL) in the 1960s, which allowed developers to use scripting as a means of creating a “sequence of direction” to control computer “punch card” programming jobs.

  • sequences were called batches which allowed to use simpler code.

• Scripting — used in the field of digital media to create interactivity, animation, and dynamic content (e.g., Flash, ActionScript, JavaScript).

• Programming — used in digital media to create applications (e.g. web programming).

• both are important in the creation of:

  • Digital Design:

    • generating digital designs from a template.

    • automating repeated tasks

    • converting digital documents to multiple formats

    • creating new features.

  • Motion Graphics:

    • creating animation and movies

    • automating tasks

    • enhancing workflows

    • performing mathematical calculations

  • Web Technology:

    • presenting web pages

    • creating animations

    • using databases to create interactive, dynamic web pages

Differences Between Scripting and Programming

A. Interpreted Languages

• Interpreted languages execute code through an interpreter that turns code into a machine-readable format.

  • happens every time code is executed.

  • Ex. ActionScript, JavaScript, PHP, and Phyton.

How Interpreted Languages Work

B. Compiled Languages

• Compiled languages require code to undergo conversion into machine-readable code using a software program known as a compiler.

  • then executed directly by the CPU each time it executes rather than working through an interpreter.

  • ex. Visual Basic and C#

How Compiled Languages Work

Types of Scripting and Programming Languages

A. Markup (Presentation) Languages

• Markup languages are used to mark up, or notate, text, either to create structured data or to specify how text should be presented.

  • ‘../ ../ ’ commonly used on the web.

  • uses tags, or keywords, to determine how data should be structured or presented.

  • tags example:

    • <mytag>Inside My Tag</mytag>

  • examples of markup languages include: Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Extensible Markup Language (XML), Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (XHTML), and Cascading Stylesheets (CSS).

B. Web Client-Side Languages

• Web client-side languages are used to create interaction that is executed on a client, such as a web browser, instead of a server.

  • ‘../ ../ ’ commonly used on the web to generate interaction between a user and a webpage.

  • example: JavaScript.

C. Web Server-Side Languages

• Web server-side languages are used to create interaction that is requested by a client, processed on a server, and then returned to a client, such as a web browser or mobile device.

  • commonly used on the web to create interaction between a website and a database

  • examples: Python, ColdFusion Markup Language ( CFML ), PHP: HyperText Processor ( PHP ), and Visual Basic.NET (VB.NET)

D. Application-Specific Languages

• Application-specific languages are used to create interactivity within a specific software application.

  • ActionScript — built-in scripting language inside Adobe Flash, and ExtendedScript in Adobe After Effects (form of JavaScript).

  • Linden Script in Second Life.