Types of Computer Languages

• Classification:
Types of Computer – Low level and High level language
Language • The first generation computer language is called
low-level languages.
• Second generation language is Assembly
Dr. Anoop Kumar Gupta language.
• Third, fourth, and fifth generation computer
MAIT languages are called high-level languages.

Key Differences between High level Key Differences between High level
and Low level Languages and Low level Languages
S.N S.N
o. High Level Language Low Level Language o. High Level Language Low Level Language

It is programmer friendly It is a machine friendly It is complex to maintain

1. language. language. 5. It is simple to maintain. comparatively.

High level language is less Low level language is high

2. memory efficient. memory efficient. 6. It is portable. It is non-portable.

3. It is easy to understand. It is tough to understand. 7. It can run on any platform. It is machine-dependent.

It is complex to debug It needs compiler or It needs assembler for

4. It is simple to debug. comparatively. 8. interpreter for translation. translation.
 Key Differences between High level Generations of Computer Languages:
and Low level Languages Machine Language
S.N
o. High Level Language Low Level Language • Machine language was the first generation
The low-level language
programming language
is a programming • Machine language: directly understood by a
language that provides computer since it is a collection of binary
Examples of high level no abstraction from the numbers (0 and 1).
languages are Python, hardware, and it is • Disadvantages: It is not standardized,
C, C++, C#, Java, represented in 0 or 1 different CPU needs different machine
JavaScript, Visual forms, which are the
languages. Slow and labor-intensive process.
5. Basic etc. machine instructions.

Assembly languages: Second Generation High -level languages: Third Generation

• One step above of machine language is 2nd gen of
programming language that is more readable • Combines algebraic expressions and English
• Computer operations are represented by mnemonic symbols.
codes rather than binary numbers. • The high-level languages are so called because
• Mnemonic codes are those codes that consist of each statement in these languages generates
alphabets or abbreviations as symbols for codifying a multiple statements at the machine-language
piece of information. E.g. HQ for headquarters, DLI level.
for Delhi in train bookings.
• It requires mush faster, more efficient compilers
• Programmers can use acronyms and words such as
to translate higher-level languages into machine
add, sub, and load in programming statements.
codes.
• A language translator called a compiler converts the
English like statements into machine language. • Advantage: CPU-independent.
• Disadvantage: CPU- dependent. • Disadvantage: computers do not understand.
 Different High Level Languages Fourth-Generation Languages
• Fourth-generation computer languages emerged in the late
Some of the high-level languages available
1970s, and their development is still in progress.
include:
• These languages dramatically reduce programming time
• FORTRAN for scientific programming, and make software tasks easy so that nontechnical
• COBOL for business data processing, computer users can develop applications without the help
• LISP for list processing, of professional programmers.
• C for systems programming, • Fourth-generation tools also include prewritten application
• Prolog for artificial intelligence, software packages that can be used directly by end users.
• ADA for real-time distributed systems, • For instance, using the software package Lotus 1-2-3, users
can create their own financial spreadsheets and manipulate
• Smalltalk for graphical user interfaces and object-
data without knowing any programming.
oriented programming, and
• C++ for object-oriented programming. • Examples are Perl, Python, Ruby, SQL, MatLab.

Fourth-Generation Languages Query Languages and Report Generators

Query language
There are seven categories of fourth-generation
• A high-level computer language used to retrieve specific
languages: information from databases or files.
• query languages, • They are usually interactive, on-line, and capable of supporting
requests for information that are not predefined.
• report generators, • Examples of two query languages are query-By-Example and
• graphics languages, FOCUS.
• application generators, Report Generators
• Software that creates customized reports in a wide range of
• very high-level programming languages, formats that are not routinely produced by an information system.
• application software packages, and • Some report generators are extensions of database or query
languages.
• PC tools. • The more complex and powerful report generators may not be
suitable for nonprofessional end-users.
Graphics Languages and Application Generators Very High-Level Programming Languages
Graphics language
• A computer language that displays data from files or databases in • A programming language that uses fewer instructions
graphic format. than conventional languages (COBOL or FORTRAN).
• The users can ask for data and specify how they are to be charted. • Programs and applications based on this language can
• Some graphics software can perform arithmetic or logical be developed in much shorter periods of time.
operations on data as well.
• Examples of two graphics languages are SAS, SYSTAT, and
• Simple features of these languages can be employed by
Harvard Graphics. end users.
Application Generators • However, they are used primarily as a professional
• Software that can generate entire information system applications. programmer productivity tool.
• The users needs only to specify what needs to be done, and the
application generator creates the appropriate program code.
• Examples: Focus, Natural, and ProGenPlus.

Application Software Packages and PC Tools

Application software packages
Fifth Generation Languages
• A software package is a prewritten, precoded, commercially • These are the programming languages that have
available set of programs that eliminates the need for individuals
or organizations to write their own software programs for certain visual tools to develop a program.
functions. • Examples of fifth-generation languages include
• Application software packages consist of prewritten application
Mercury, OPS5, and Prolog.
software that is marketed commercially.
• Examples: Maxicalc and SAP R/3
PC Tools
• Some of the most popular and productivity-promoting fourth-
generation tools are the general-purpose application packages that
have been developed for PCs, especially word processing,
spreadsheet, data management, graphics, integrated software
packages, and Web browsers
• Examples: Lotus 1-2-3, WordPerfect, and Access.
 Important features of New Software Tools

• Event driven
• OLE (Object linking and embedding)
THANK YOU • Object-oriented
• Supports multimedia
• Supports databases

17

Event-driven: new way of thinking Object linking and embedding

• Allows sharing data and code between app.
• Traditional programming • Visual Basic • complete application
– 1. Fill kettle with water – 1. Show coffee, kettle, – Excel sheet: complex calculation.
– 2. Put kettle on. water, milk and cup
to user. – Access database: data source
– 3. Place coffee in cup.
– 2. Let user make the – Word: complex report
– 4. Place milk in cup.
coffee. – documents: combine two data sources
– 5. Wait until kettle has
boiled. • Object can be attached to host document by
– 6. Pour water into cup.
– linking to it
– actually embedding it to the application.
 Object-Oriented Programming: Java
• Java supports object-oriented Programming.
Object-oriented programming • Object-oriented approach is more natural, it gives model of a real
world.
• Breaks the problem down into objects. • Every thing in the world that we can see is an object (e.g. book,
• Each object with a life of its own. computer, car, etc.)
• Every object has its attributes and behaviors.
• Each object has certain properties and
• If we want to learn about an object, we have to study about its
certain methods. attributes and behaviors.
• Programmer decides the required properties • For example, car is an object.
and methods of an object to bring its life. • The attributes of a car can be color, style, make, etc.
• The behaviors of a car can be to the engine, stop the engine, speed
• Example: Car up, etc.
– properties: color, style, make • If we want to learn a new object, we will think about the similar
– method: to start/stop the engine object that we already knew and then build up a relationship
between the old and the new things.

Object-Oriented Programming: Java Object-Oriented Programming: Java

• Different objects may have common attributes and behaviors.
• For example, sedan, truck, and wagon have common attributes Vehicle superclass
(color, style, make) and common behaviors (to start the engine,
stop the engine, speed up). Car Subclass inherits all the methods and
• We would like to build up an inheritance relationship between the variables from its superclasses.
known objects and new objects.This is the way we would like to
group similar things together.
Sedan truck Wagon subclass
• In object-oriented language(Java), we define classes of objects.
• A class is a template for multiple objects with similar features. The When you write a class, you only have to specify how the class is
class car describes the features of all cars. different from its super class.
• Each class can have superclases and subclasses. Subclass inherits
all the methods and variables from its superclasses.
Inheritance provides software reusability by creating new classes from
• For example, car is a superclass of (sedan,truck, and wagon). the existing classes. It saves time and money in program development.
 Java Programming Language
• Java was designed to meet the challenges of application
development in heterogeneous, network-wide distributed
environment.
• Now Java has become the most popular language.
• Platform independence is one of the major factors that contribute
to its success.
• Besides this, it is fully object-oriented for creating flexible,
modular programs and reusing code.
• It is easy to write, easy to compile, and easy to debug.
• It is a very powerful and secure language.
• The most common use of Java is creating applets for HotJava.