9.9: Vocabulary
- Page ID
- 17638
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Throughout the book, we try to define each term the first time we use it. At the end of each chapter, we include the new terms and their definitions in order of appearance. If you spend some time learning this vocabulary, you will have an easier time reading the following chapters.
- problem solving:
- The process of formulating a problem, finding a solution, and expressing the solution.
- program:
- A sequence of instructions that specifies how to perform tasks on a computer.
- programming:
- The application of problem solving to creating executable computer programs.
- computer science:
- The scientific and practical approach to computation and its applications.
- algorithm:
- A procedure or formula for solving a problem, with or without a computer.
- bug:
- An error in a program.
- debugging:
- The process of finding and removing errors.
- high-level language:
- A programming language that is designed to be easy for humans to read and write.
- low-level language:
- A programming language that is designed to be easy for a computer to run. Also called “machine language” or “assembly language”.
- portable:
- The ability of a program to run on more than one kind of computer.
- interpret:
- To run a program in a high-level language by translating it one line at a time and immediately executing the corresponding instructions.
- compile:
- To translate a program in a high-level language into a low-level language, all at once, in preparation for later execution.
- source code:
- A program in a high-level language, before being compiled.
- object code:
- The output of the compiler, after translating the program.
- executable:
- Another name for object code that is ready to run on specific hardware.
- byte code:
- A special kind of object code used for Java programs. Byte code is similar to a low-level language, but it is portable like a high-level language.
- statement:
- Part of a program that specifies one step of an algorithm.
- print statement:
- A statement that causes output to be displayed on the screen.
- method:
- A named sequence of statements.
- class:
- For now, a collection of related methods. (We will see later that there is more to it.)
- comment:
- A part of a program that contains information about the program but has no effect when the program runs.
- string:
- A sequence of characters; the primary data type for text.
- newline:
- A special character signifying the end of a line of text. Also known as line ending, end of line (EOL), or line break.
- escape sequence:
- A sequence of code that represents a special character when used inside a string.