ALGORITHMS AND

FLOWCHARTS
A typical programming task can be
divided into two phases:
Problem solving phase
produce an ordered sequence of
steps that describe solution of
problem
this sequence of steps is called
an algorithm
Implementation phase
implement the program in some
programming language
Name

Symbol

Use in Flowchart

Oval

Denotes the beginning or end of the program

Parallelogram

Denotes an input operation

Rectangle

Denotes a process to be carried out

e.g. addition, subtraction, division etc.

Diamond

Denotes a decision (or branch) to be made.

The program should continue along one of
two routes. (e.g. IF/THEN/ELSE)

Hybrid

Denotes an output operation

Flow line

Denotes the direction of logic flow in the program

Steps in Problem Solving

First produce a general algorithm (one
can use pseudocode)
Refine the algorithm successively to
get step by step detailed algorithm
that is very close to a computer
language.
Pseudocode is an artificial and
informal language that helps
programmers develop algorithms.
Pseudocode is very similar to
everyday English.
Pseudocode & Algorithm
Example 1: Write an algorithm to
determine a students final grade and
indicate whether it is passing or
failing. The final grade is calculated as
the average of four marks.

Pseudocode:
Input a set of 4 marks
Calculate their average by summing
and dividing by 4
if average is below 50
Print FAIL
else
Print PASS
Detailed Algorithm

Step 1:
Input
M1,M2,M3,M4
Step 2:
GRADE
(M1+M2+M3+M4)/4
Step 3:
if (GRADE < 50)
then
Print FAIL
else
Print PASS
endif
The Flowchart
(Dictionary) A schematic
representation of a sequence of
operations, as in a manufacturing
process or computer program.
(Technical) A graphical representation
of the sequence of operations in an
information system or program.PRINT
Information system flowcharts show
PASS
how data flows from source
documents through the computer to
final distribution to users. Program
flowcharts show the sequence of
instructions in a single program or
subroutine. Different symbols are used
to draw each type of flowchart.
A Flowchart
shows logic of an algorithm
emphasizes individual steps and
their interconnections
e.g. control flow from one action
to the next
Flowchart Symbols : Basic

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ST
Input
AR
Lft
T
Lcm
Prin

Lft
t30
xST
Lcm
OP
Example
Step 1:
Step 2:
Step 3:

PRINT
Lcm
Input M1,M2,M3,M4
GRADE (M1+M2+M3+M4)/4
if (GRADE <50) then
Print FAIL

else
Print PASS
endif
ST

AR
Input
T
M1,M2
GRADE(M1+
,M3,M
NM2+M3+M4)/4
Y
IS4
GRA
PRIN
DE<
T
ST
50
FAIL
OP

PRINT
FAIL
Example 2
Write an algorithm and draw a
flowchart to convert the length in feet
to centimeter.
Pseudocode:
Input the length in feet (Lft)
Calculate the length in cm (Lcm) by
multiplying LFT with 30
Print length in cm (LCM)
Algorithm
Step 1: Input Lft
Step 2:
Lcm Lft x 30
Step 3:
Print Lcm
Flowchart

Example 3
Write an algorithm and draw a flowchart that
will read the two sides of a rectangle and
calculate its area.
Pseudocode
Input the width (W) and Length (L) of
a rectangle
Calculate the area (A) by multiplying L
with W
Print A
Algorithm
Step 1:
Input W,L
Step 2:
A L x W
Step 3:
Print A

STA
RT
Input
W, L
ALx
W
Print
A
STO
P
PRINT
A

Example 4
Write an algorithm and draw a
flowchart that will calculate the roots
of a quadratic equation
Hint: d = sqrt (
), and the
roots are: x1 = (b + d)/2a and x2 =
(b d)/2a
Pseudocode:
Input the coefficients (a, b, c) of the
quadratic equation
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 Calculate d
Calculate x1
Calculate x2
Print x1 and x2
Algorithm:
Step 1:
Input a, b, c
Step 2:
d sqrt (
)
Step 3:
x1 (b + d) / (2 x a)
Step 4:
x2 (b d) / (2 x a)
Step 5:
Print x1, x2

ST
AR
Input
a,
b,
dT
c xb
x1 (b
+
sqrt(b
X

(b
24 /x(2
d)
a xx
Prin
d)c)
/ (2 x
a)
t
a)
ST
x1
OP
,x2

Y
P
ri
n
t
A

Pri
nt
A

i
s
A
>
B

PRINT
A

i
s
A
>
B

P
ri
n
t
B

PRINT
A

DECISION STRUCTURES
Y

if A>B is true (if A is greater than

B) we take the action on left
print the value of A
if A>B is false (if A is not greater
than B) we take the action on right
print the value of B
IFTHENELSE STRUCTURE
The structure is as follows
If condition then
true alternative
else
false alternative
end if
The algorithm for the flowchart is as
follows:
If A>B then
print A
else
print B
endif

PRINT
B

Pri
nt
B

Relational Operators

PRINT
B

The expression A>B is a logical

expression
it describes a condition we want to
test

Operat
or

Description

>

Greater than

<

Less than

Equal to

Greater than or equal to

Less than or equal to

Not equal to

Example 5
Write an algorithm that reads two
values, determines the largest value
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and prints the largest value with an

identifying message.
ALGORITHM
Step 1:
Input VALUE1, VALUE2
Step 2:
if (VALUE1 > VALUE2) then
MAX VALUE1
else
MAX VALUE2
endif
Step 3:
Print The largest value is,
MAX

S
Input
T
Ais
Y VALU
N
VALUE1>
R
MAX E1,VA
VALUE2MAX
LUE2
T

Print
VALU The
VALU
S
E1 largest
E2
T
value
O is,
PRINT
MAX
PThe largest value is,
MAX
NESTED IFS
One of the alternatives within an IF
THENELSE statement
may involve further IFTHEN
ELSE statement
Example 6
Write an algorithm that reads three
numbers and prints the value of the
largest number.
Step 1: Input N1, N2, N3
Step 2: if (N1>N2) then
if (N1>N3) then
MAX N1 [N1>N2,
N1>N3]
else
MAX N3
[N3>N1>N2]
endif
else
if (N2>N3) then
MAX N2 [N2>N1,
N2>N3]
else
MAX N3
[N3>N2>N1]
endif

endif
Step 3: Print The largest number
is, MAX
Flowchart: Draw the flowchart of
the above Algorithm.

Example 7
Write and algorithm and draw a
flowchart to
a) read an employee name (NAME),
overtime hours worked (OVERTIME),
hours absent (ABSENT) and
b) Determine the bonus payment
(PAYMENT).
Bonus Schedule
OVERTIME
(2/3)*ABSENT
>40 hours
>30 but 40
hours
>20 but 30
hours
>10 but 20
hours
10 hours

Bonus Paid

$50
$40
$30
$20
$10

Step 1: Input NAME,OVERTIME,ABSENT

Step 2: if (OVERTIME(2/3)*ABSENT > 40)
then
PAYMENT 50
else if (OVERTIME(2/3)*ABSENT > 30)
then
PAYMENT 40
else if (OVERTIME(2/3)*ABSENT > 20)
then
PAYMENT 30
else if (OVERTIME(2/3)*ABSENT > 10)
then
PAYMENT 20
else
PAYMENT 10
endif
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Step 3: Print Bonus for, NAME is $,

PAYMENT
Flowchart: Draw the flowchart of
the above algorithm?

Getting Started With Visual

Basic 6.0
Visual Basic IDE is made up of a number
of components:
Menu Bar
Tool Bar
Project Explorer
Properties window
Form Layout Window
Toolbox
Form Designer
Object Browser
Menu Bar
The Menu Bar displays the
commands that are required to build
an application. The main menu items
have sub menu items that can be
chosen when needed. The toolbars in
the menu bar provide quick access to
the commonly used commands and a
button in the toolbar is clicked once to
carry out the action represented by it.
Toolbox
The Toolbox contains a set of controls
that are used to place on a Form at
design time thereby creating the user
interface area. Additional controls can
be included in the toolbox by using the
Components menu item on the Project
menu. A Toolbox is represented in
figure 2 shown below.
Toolbox window with its controls available
commonly.

Control

Description
Provides a way to
Pointer
move and resize the
controls form
Displays
icons/bitmaps and
metafiles. It displays
PictureBox
text or acts as a
visual container for
other controls.
Used to display
TextBox
message and enter
text.
Serves as a visual
Frame
and functional
container for controls
Used to carry out the
CommandButton
specified action when
the user chooses it.
Displays a True/False
CheckBox
or Yes/No option.
OptionButton
OptionButton control
which is a part of an
option group allows
the user to select
only one option even
it displays mulitiple
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ListBox

ComboBox

HScrollBar and
VScrollBar

Timer

DriveListBox

DirListBox

FileListBox

Shape
Line

Image

Data

choices.
Displays a list of
items from which a
user can select one.
Contains a TextBox
and a ListBox. This
allows the user to
select an ietm from
the dropdown
ListBox, or to type in
a selection in the
TextBox.
These controls allow
the user to select a
value within the
specified range of
values
Executes the timer
events at specified
intervals of time
Displays the valid
disk drives and
allows the user to
select one of them.
Allows the user to
select the directories
and paths, which are
displayed.
Displays a set of files
from which a user
can select the
desired one.
Used to add shape
(rectangle, square or
circle) to a Form
Used to draw straight
line to the Form
used to display
images such as
icons, bitmaps and
metafiles. But less
capability than the
PictureBox
Enables the use to
connect to an
existing database
and display
information from it.

OLE

Label

Used to link or
embed an object,
display and
manipulate data from
other windows based
applications.
Displays a text that
the user cannot
modify or interact
with.

Project Explorer
Docked on the right side of the screen,
just under the toolbar, is the Project
Explorer window. The Project Explorer
as shown in in figure serves as a quick
reference to the various elements of a
project
namely form, classes and modules. All
of the object that make up the
application are packed in a project. A
simple project will typically contain
one form, which is a window that is
designed as part of a program's
interface. It is possible to develop any
number of forms for use in a program,
although a program may consist of a
single form. In addition to forms, the
Project Explorer window also lists code
modules and classes.

Properties Window
The Properties Window is docked
under the Project Explorer window. The
Properties Window exposes the
various characteristics of selected
objects. Each and every form in an
application is considered an object.
Now, each object in Visual Basic has
characteristics such as color and size.
Other characteristics affect not just
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the appearance of the object but the

way it behaves too. All these
characteristics of an object are called
its properties. Thus, a form has
properties and any controls placed on
it will have properties too. All of these
properties are displayed in the
Properties Window.
Object Browser
The Object Browser allows us to
browse through the various properties,
events and methods that are made
available to us. It is accessed by
selecting Object Browser from the
View menu or pressing the key F2. The
left column of the Object Browser lists
the objects and classes that are
available in the projects that are
opened and the controls that have
been referenced in them. It is possible
for us to scroll through the list and
select the object or class that we wish
to inspect. After an object is picked up
from the Classes list, we can see its
members (properties, methods and
events) in the right column.
A property is represented by a small
icon that has a hand holding a piece of
paper. Methods are denoted by little
green blocks, while events are
denoted by yellow lightning bolt icon.
Object naming conversions of controls
(prefix):
Form -frm
Label-lbl
TextBox-txt
CommandButton-cmd
CheckBox -chk
OptionButton -opt
ComboBox -cbo
ListBox-lst
Frame-fme
PictureBox -pic
Image-img
Shape-shp
Line -lin
HScrollBar -hsb
VScrollBar -vsb
Properties, Methods And Events
All the controls in the ToolBox except
the Pointer are objects in Visual Basic.

These objects have associated

properties, methods and events.
Real world objects are loaded with
properties. For example, a flower is
loaded certain color, shape and
fragrance. Similarly programming
objects are loaded with properties. A
property is a named attribute of a
programming object. Properties define
the characteristics of an object such
as Size, Color etc. or sometimes the
way in which it behaves. For example,
a TextBox accepts properties such as
Enabled, Font, MultiLine, Text, Visible,
Width, etc.
Example
Enable property allows the TextBox to
be enabled or disabled at run time
depending on the condition set to True
or False.
Font property sets a particular font in
the TextBox.
MultiLine property allows the TextBox
to accept and display multiple lines at
run time.
Text property of the TextBox control
sets a particular text in the control.
Visible property is used to hide the
object at run time.
Width property sets the TextBox to
the desired width at design time.
The properties that are discussed
above are design-time properties
that can be set at the design time by
selecting the Properties Window. But
certain properties cannot be set at
design time. For example, the
CurrentX and CurrentY properties of a
Form cannot be set at the design time.
Methods
A method is an action that can be
performed on objects. For example, a
cat is an object. Its properties might
include long white hair, blue eyes, 3
pounds weight etc. A complete
definition of cat must only encompass
on its looks, but should also include a
complete itemization of its activities.
Therefore, a cat's methods might be
move, jump, play, breath etc.
Similarly in object-oriented
programming, a method is a
connected or built-in procedure, a
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block of code that can be invoked to

impart some action on a particular
object. A method requires an object to
provide them with a context. For
example, the word Move has no
meaning in Visual Basic, but the
statement,
Text1.Move 700, 400
performs a very precise action. The
TextBox control has other associated
methods such as Refresh, SetFocus,
etc.
The Refresh method enforces a
complete repaint of the control or a
Form. For example, Text1.Refresh
refreshes the TextBox.
The Setfocus method moves the
focus on the control. For Example
Text1.SetFocus sets the focus to
TextBox control Text1.
Event Driven Programming
Visual Basic programs are built around
events. Events are various things that
can happen in a program. this will
become clearer when studied in
contrast to procedural programming.
In procedural languages, an
application is written is executed by
checking for the program logically
through the program statements, one
after another. For a temporary phase,
the control may be transferred to
some other point in a program. While
in an event driven application, the
program statements are executed only
when a particular event calls a specific
part of the code that is assigned to the
event.
Let us consider a TextBox control and
a few of its associated events to
understand the concept of event
driven programming.
The TextBox control supports various
events such as Change, Click,
MouseMove and many more that will
be listed in the Properties dropdown
list in the code window for the TextBox
control. We will look into a few of them
as given below.
The code entered in the Change
event fires when there is a
change in the contents of the
TextBox

The Click event fires when the

TextBox control is clicked.
The MouseMove event fires
when the mouse is moved over
the TextBox
As explained above, several events
are associated with different controls
and forms, some of the events being
common to most of them and few
being specific to each control.

Visual Basic 6 (VB6) Data Types,

Modules And Operators
Visual Basic uses building blocks such
as Variables, Data Types,
Procedures, Functions and Control
Structures in its programming
environment. This section
concentrates on the programming
fundamentals of Visual Basic with the
blocks specified.
Modules
Code in Visual Basic is stored in the
form of modules. The three kind of
modules are Form Modules, Standard
Modules and Class Modules. A simple
application may contain a single Form,
and the code resides in that Form
module itself. As the application
grows, additional Forms are added and
there may be a common code to be
executed in several Forms. To avoid
the duplication of code, a separate
module containing a procedure is
created that implements the common
code. This is a standard Module.
Class module (.CLS filename
extension) are the foundation of the
object oriented programming in Visual
Basic. New objects can be created by
writing code in class modules. Each
module can contain:
Declarations : May include
constant, type, variable and DLL
procedure declarations.
Procedures : A sub function, or
property procedure that contain
pieces of code that can be
executed as a unit.
Naming Convention
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 These are the rules to follow when

naming elements in VB - variables,
constants, controls, procedures, and
so on:
A name must begin with a
letter.
May be as much as 255
characters long (but don't forget
that somebody has to type the
stuff!).
Must not contain a space or an
embedded period or typedeclaration characters used to
specify a data type; these are !
#%$&@
Must not be a reserved word
(that is part of the code, like
Option, for example)
The dash, although legal, should
be avoided because it may be
confused with the minus sign.
Instead of First-name use
First_name or FirstName.
Data types in Visual Basic 6
By default Visual Basic variables are of
variant data types. The variant data
type can store numeric, date/time or
string data. When a variable is
declared, a data type is supplied for it
that determines the kind of data they
can store. The fundamental data types
in Visual Basic including variant are
integer, long, single, double,
string, currency, byte and boolean.
Visual Basic supports a vast array of
data types. Each data type has limits
to the kind of information and the
minimum and maximum values it can
hold. In addition, some types can
interchange with some other types. A
list of Visual Basic's simple data types
are given below.
Numeric
Store integer values in the range of
Byte
- 255

Double Store large floating value which

exceeding the single data type
Operator Descripti
Example
Result
value
s
on
store than
monetary values.
> Curren Greater
10>8 It True
cy
supports 4 digits to the right of
<
Less
decimal
than point and 10<8
15 digits
False
to
the left
Greater than or
20>=1
>=
True
equal to
0
<=

Less than or equal

to

10<=2
True
0

<>

Not Equal to

5<>4

True

Equal to

5=7

False

String
Use to store alphanumeric values. A
variable length string can store
approximately 4 billion characters
Date
Use to store date and time values. A
variable declared as date type can
store both date and time values and it
can store date values 01/01/0100 up
to 12/31/9999
Boolean
Boolean data types hold either a true
or false value. These are not stored as
numeric values and cannot be used as
such. Values are internally stored as -1
(True) and 0 (False) and any non-zero
value is considered as true.
Variant
Stores any type of data and is the
default Visual Basic data type. In
Visual Basic if we declare a variable
without any data type by default the
data type is assigned as default.

Operators in Visual Basic

Arithmetical Operators

Integer

Store integer values in the range of (32,768) - (+ 32,767)

Long

Store integer values in the range of (2,147,483,468) - (+ 2,147,483,468)

Single

Store floating point value in the range

of (-3.4x10-38) - (+ 3.4x1038)
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Operators

OR

AND

Description
Operation will be true if either
of the operands is true
Operation will be true only if
both the operands are true

Relational Operators
Logical Operators
Variables In Visual Basic 6
Variables are the memory locations
which are used to store values
temporarily. A defined naming
strategy has to be followed while
naming a variable. A variable name
must begin with an alphabet letter and
should not exceed 255 characters. It
must be unique within the same
scope. It should not contain any
special character like %, &, !, #, @ or
$.
Variable Declaration
There are many ways of declaring
variables in Visual Basic. Depending
on where the variables are declared
and how they are declared, we can
determine how they can be used by
our application. The different ways of
declaring variables in Visual Basic are
listed below.
Explicit Declaration
Declaring a variable tells Visual Basic
to reserve space in memory. It is not
must that a variable should be
declared before using it. Automatically
whenever Visual Basic encounters a
new variable, it assigns the default
variable type and value. This is called
implicit declaration. Though this
type of declaration is easier for the
user, to have more control over the
variables, it is advisable to declare
them explicitly. The variables are
declared with a Dim statement to
name the variable and its type. The As
type clause in the Dim statement

Operator
Description Example
s

Result

Add

5+5

10

Substract

10-5

Divide

25/5

Integer
Division

20\3

Multiply

5*4

20

Exponent
(power of)

3^3

27

Mod

Remainder
of division

20 Mod 6

&

String
"George"& "George
concatenatio
" "&"Bush" Bush"
n
allows to define the data type or
object type of the variable. This is
called explicit declaration.
Syntax
Dim variable [As Type]
For example,
Dim strName As String
Dim intCounter As Integer
Using Option Explicit statement
In Visual Basic, to prevent errors we
can declare a variable by adding the
following statement to the general
declaration section of the Form.
Option Explicit
This forces the user to declare all the
variables. The Option Explicit
statement checks in the module for
usage of any undeclared variables and
reports an error to the user. The user
can thus rectify the error on seeing
this error message.
Scope of variables
A variable is scoped to a procedurelevel (local) or module-level
variable depending on how it is
declared. The scope of a variable,
procedure or object determines which
part of the code in our application are
aware of the variable's existence. A
variable is declared in general
declaration section of a Form, and
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hence is available to all the

procedures. Local variables are
recognized only in the procedure in
which they are declared. They can be
declared
with Dim and Static keywords. If we
want a variable to be available to all of
the procedures within the same
module, or to all the procedures in an
application, a variable is declared with
broader scope.
Local Variables
A local variable is one that is
declared inside a procedure. This
variable is only available to the code
inside the procedure and can be
declared using the Dim statements as
given below.
Dim sum As Integer
The local variables exist as long as the
procedure in which they are declared,
is executing. Once a procedure is
executed, the values of its local
variables are lost and the memory
used by these variables is freed and
can be reclaimed. Variables that are
declared with keyword Dim exist only
as long as the procedure is being
executed.
Static Variables
Static variables are not reinitialized
each time Visual Invokes a procedure
and therefore retains or preserves
value even when a procedure ends. In
case we need to keep track of the
number of times a command button in
an application is clicked, a static
counter variable has to be declared.
These static variables are also ideal
for making controls alternately visible
or invisible. A static variable is
declared as given below.
Static intPermanent As Integer
Module Level Variables
A module level variable is available
to all the procedures in the module.
They are declared using the Public or
the Private keyword. If you declare a
variable using a Private or a Dim
statement in the declaration section of
a modulea standard BAS module, a
form module, a class module, and so
onyou're creating a private module-

level variable. Such variables are

visible only from within the module
they belong to and can't be accessed
from the outside.
Public vs Local Variables
A variable can have the same name
and different scope. For example, we
can have a public variable named R
and within a procedure we can declare
a local variable R. References to the
name R within the procedure would
access the local variable and
references to R outside the procedure
would access the public variable.
Procedures In Visual Basic 6
Visual Basic offers different types of
procedures to execute small sections
of coding in applications. Visual Basic
programs can be broken into smaller
logical components called
Procedures. Procedures are useful for
condensing repeated operations such
as the frequently used calculations,
text and control manipulation etc.
Benefits of Procedures
It is easier to debug a program a
program with procedures, which
breaks a program into discrete logical
limits.
Procedures used in one program can
act as building blocks for other
programs with slight modifications.
Sub Procedures
A sub procedure can be placed in
standard, class and form modules.
Each time the procedure is called, the
statements between Sub and End Sub
are executed. The syntax for a sub
procedure is as follows:
[Private | Public] [Static] Sub
Procedurename
[( arglist)]
[ statements]
End Sub
arglist is a list of argument names
separated by commas. Each argument
acts like a variable in the procedure.
There are two types of Sub Procedures
namely general procedures and
event procedures.
An event procedure is a procedure
block that contains the control's actual
name, an underscore(_), and the event
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name. The following syntax represents

the event procedure for a Form_Load
event.
Private Sub Form_Load()
....statement block..
End Sub
Event Procedures acquire the
declarations as Private by default.
A general procedure is declared
when several event procedures
perform the same actions. It is a good
programming practice to write
common statements in a separate
procedure (general procedure) and
then call them in the event procedure.
Function Procedures
Functions are like sub procedures,
except they return a value to the
calling procedure. They are especially
useful for taking one or more pieces of
data, called arguments and
performing some tasks with them.
Then the functions returns a value that
indicates the results of the tasks
complete within the function.
The following function procedure
calculates the third side or hypotenuse
of a right triangle, where A and B are
the other two sides. It takes two
arguments A and B (of data type
Double) and finally returns the results.
Function Hypotenuse (A As Double, B
As Double) As Double

Hypotenuse = Sqr (A^2 + B^2)

End Function
Property Procedures
A property procedure is used to
create and manipulate custom
properties. It is used to create read
only properties for Forms, Standard
modules and Class modules. Visual
Basic provides three kind of property
procedures-Property Let procedure
that sets the value of a property,
Property Get procedure that returns
the value of a property, and Property
Set procedure that sets the references
to an object.

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God Bless Everyone!