High-level programming languageA high-level programming language is a programming language with strong abstraction from the details of the computer. In contrast to low-level programming languages, it may use natural language elements, be easier to use, or may automate (or even hide entirely) significant areas of computing systems (e.g. memory management), making the process of developing a program simpler and more understandable than when using a lower-level language.General-purpose programming languageIn computer software, a general-purpose programming language (GPL) is a programming language for building software in a wide variety of application domains. Conversely, a domain-specific programming language (DSL) is used within a specific area. For example, Python is a GPL, while SQL is a DSL for querying relational databases.
Pascal (programming language)Pascal is an imperative and proceduralprogramming language, designed by Niklaus Wirth as a small, efficient language intended to encourage good programming practices using structured programming and data structuring. It is named after French mathematician, philosopher and physicist Blaise Pascal. Pascal was developed on the pattern of the ALGOL 60 language.
Programming languageA programming language is an engineered language for expressing computer programs, typically allowing software to be written in a human readable manner. Execution of a program requires an implementation. There are two main approaches for implementing a programming language – compilation, where programs are translated ahead-of-time to machine code, and interpretation, where programs are directly executed.System softwareSystem software is software that provides a platform for other software. Examples include the kernel and device drivers of an operating system (OS). A program that runs in the context of the platform is classified as application or utility software based on the functionality it provides and the role of intended users. Application software provides for the normal use of a computer, without regard to how the computer works or what it needs to function.Systems programmingSystems programming, or system programming, is the activity of programming computer system software.
Computer hardwareComputer hardware, commonly shortened to hardware, includes the physical parts of a computer, such as the central processing unit (CPU), random-access memory (RAM), motherboard, computer data storage, graphics card, sound card, and computer case. It includes external devices such as a monitor, mouse, keyboard, and speakers. By contrast, software is a set of written instructions that can be stored and run by hardware.Computing platformA computing platform, digital platform, or software platform is the infrastructure on which software is executed. While the individual components of a computing platform may be obfuscated under layers of abstraction, the summation of the required components comprise the computing platform.Structured programmingStructured programming is a programming paradigm characterized by source code that uses block-based source code structure to encode control flow such as sequence, selection (i.e. if-then-else and switch) and iteration (i.e. for and while). Originally, the central goal of the structured programming movement was to eliminate the need for and use of the goto statement.
Burroughs Large SystemsThe Burroughs Large Systems Group produced a family of large 48-bitmainframes using stack machine instruction sets with dense syllables. The first machine in the family was the B5000 in 1961, which was optimized for compiling ALGOL 60 programs extremely well, using single-pass compilers. The B5000 evolved into the B5500 (disk rather than drum) and the B5700 (up to four systems running as a cluster).
Edsger W. DijkstraEdsger Wybe Dijkstra ( ; Dutch:; 11 May 1930 – 6 August 2002) was a Dutch computer scientist, programmer, mathematician, and science essayist. Born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands, Dijkstra studied mathematics and physics and then theoretical physics at the University of Leiden. Adriaan van Wijngaarden offered him a job as the first computer programmer in the Netherlands at the Mathematical Centre in Amsterdam, where he worked from 1952 until 1962.
AlgolAlgol, designated Beta Persei (β Persei, abbreviated Beta Per, β Per), known colloquially as the Demon Star, is a bright multiple star in the constellation of Perseus and one of the first non-novavariable stars to be discovered. Algol is a three-star system, consisting of Beta Persei Aa1, Aa2, and Ab – in which the hot luminous primary β Persei Aa1 and the larger, but cooler and fainter, β Persei Aa2 regularly pass in front of each other, causing eclipses.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.