CLASS : SS1 WEEK/PERIOD: Five & six LESSON TOPIC/TITLE: PROGRAMMING LANGUAUGE

CONTENT A programming language describes the way in which the instructions that make up a computer program are written. The three basic types of programming language are machine language, assembly language and high –level language. LEVELS OF PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE 1. Machine Language (MC) 2. Low Level Language (LLL) 3. High Level Language (HLL) 1. Machine Language: A machine language is a programming language composed of numeric instructions. It is made up of strings of binary digits specific to a particular make and model of a computer. Each machine language instruction is stored in one storage location as a binary number, but usually written in the octal or hexadecimal form. Most instructions consist of two parts, namely, an operation code that indicates what operation is to be performed and the address of the operand indicating where the necessary data can be found. FEATURES OF MACHINE LANGUAGE I. It is machine dependent II. Consume less space of the computer memory unlike high level language III. It is written in 0’s and 1’s IV. It is very difficult to write and modify ADVANTAGES O MACHINE LANGUAE DISADDVANTAGES Consume less space of computer memory They are prone to errors It is not difficult for machine to understand 0’s & 1’s Machine dependent It is the only language that computer understand They are tedious and boring to write and read They are very flexible They are difficult to amend for errors and to change LOW LEVEL LANGUAGE/ ASSEMBLY LANGUAGE This language is either a machine language or an assembly language. It is written in mnemonic or instruction code. Assembler converts programs written in low level language to machine language FEATURES OF LOW LEVEL LANGUAGE 1. Machine dependent 2. Syndetic code is used e.g HLT or HALT 3. Mnemonic codes are used in place of actual machined ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES It is next to machine language Assembly languages are more difficult to learn than high language System software are written in low level language Is difficult to modify than high level language Consume less of computer memory Machine dependent The task of learning and writing the language is easier than with machine language Difficult to code and time consuming Assembly language can be used or programming closed subroutines It can’t be used to write application program HIGH –LEVEL LANGUAGE A high –Level computer language is a programming language composed of instructions written in English words (for business application) or in mathematical notations (for scientific applications). A high –Level language must be converted into machine language through a translator e.g Compiler and interpreter. FEATURES OF HIGH –LEVEL LANGUAGE 1. It is machine independent 2. It consist of series of instruction code 3. Rules must be adhered to when writing it 4. It is easy to read and understand 5. They are problem oriented ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES They are machine independent Consume more computer memory They are easy to write and understand Difficult to translate into machine language They are problem oriented Translation takes more time and tedious It can be used on more than one type of computeR Produces less efficient programs in terms of speed and memory They are portable and easier to modify Does not take advantages of specific facilities on individual computers