Introduction to Programming- SE1133

Lecture 3 – Intro to Programming

Asia Shahab
Previous Lecture Summary

• Introduction to Computers

• Components of a Computer

• Storage Devices

• Register Memory

• System Software

• Application Software
What is a Computer??

• A computer is an electronic device that manipulates information, or data. It has the ability
to store, retrieve, and process data.

• Computer is an electronic device that takes raw data as an input from the user and processes
it under the control of a set of instructions (called program), produces a result (output), and
saves it for future use.

• A computer is a machine or device that performs processes, calculations and operations based
on instructions provided by a software or hardware program. It has the ability to accept data
(input), process it, and then produce outputs.
Cont…
• Computers are electronic devices that can follow instructions to
• Accept input
• Process that input
• Produce information
• Alternatively, a computer is a device capable of performing calculations and making
logical decisions at speeds millions, and even billions, of times faster than human
beings can.

Instructions
A Computer Results
System
Data
Computer Instructions and Programs

Instruction:
A computer instruction is a command or directive/instruction given to a
computer to perform specific task.
Examples: Add 2 and 5, Print “Hello World”

Program:
A program is sequence of instructions written in programming language that
directs a computer to solve a problem
Examples: Draw a square, etc.
Cont…
Program “Draw a square”

1 – Draw a vertical line of length n inches

2 – Draw a horizontal line of n inches
3– Draw a vertical line of length n inches
4 – Draw a horizontal line of n inches
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Computer Software System

Application Programs
(.cpp, .c, .java,)

Compilers / Libraries
(C++, C, Java)

Operating Systems
(Windows, Linux, MAC, Solaris)

Computer Hardware
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Programming Languages

Classification of programming languages:

1. Machine language

2. Low-level languages

3. High-level languages

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1. Machine level languages

A computer understands only sequence of bits or 1’s and 0’s

A computer program can be written using machine languages

(01001101010010010….)

• Very fast execution

• Very difficult to write and debug

• Machine specific (different codes on different machines)

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2. Low level languages
• English encrypted words instead of codes (1’s and 0’s)

• Requires: “Translation”/Assembler from Assembly code to

Machine code

• More understandable (for humans) i.e. Assembly language

Assembly Code Machine Code

compare: 1001010101001101
cmpl #oxa,n 1110010110010100
Assembler
cgt 0101010111010010
end_of_loop 0110100110111011
acddl #0x1,n 1101100101010101
end_of_loop:
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3. High level languages
• Mostly machine independent

• Close to natural language (English like language keywords)

• Easy to write and understand

• Easy to debug and maintain code

• Requires compilers to translate into machine code

• Examples: Java, C++, Python etc.

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Problem Solving Steps

1. Understand the problem

2. Plan the logic

3. Code the program

4. Test the program

5. Deploy the program into production

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1. Understanding the Problem
• Problems are often described in natural language like English.

• Users may not be able to specify needs well, or the needs may changing frequently

• Identify the requirements

1. Inputs or given data-items

2. Required output(s) or desired results

3. Indirect inputs (may not be given directly, you have to calculate or assume)

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1. Understanding the Problem
Example: Calculate the area of a circle having the radius of 3 cm

• Inputs: Radius=3

• Output: Area

• Indirect Inputs: Pi=3.14

Area = pi r^2

3.14 * (3*3) = 28.27

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2. Plan the Logic

• Identify/Outline small steps in sequence, to achieve the goal (or

desired results)

• Tools such as flowcharts and pseudocode can be used:

• Flowchart: a pictorial representation of the logic steps

• Pseudocode: English-like representation of the logic

• Walk through the logic before coding

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3. Code the Program
Code the program:

• Select the programming language

• Write the program instructions in the selected programming language

• Use the compiler software to translate the program into machine

understandable code or executable file (i.e. .cpp)

• Syntax errors (Error in program instructions) are identified by the

compiler during compilation and can be corrected.

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4. Test the Program
Testing the program
• Execute it with sample data and check the results
• Identify logic errors if any (undesired results or output) and correct
them
• Choose test data carefully to exercise all branches of the logic
(Important)

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5. Deploy the Program

Putting the program into production

• Do this after testing is complete and all known errors
have been corrected

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Introduction to Pseudocode
• One of the popular representation based on natural language/
English like statements
• Easy to read and write
• Allow the programmer to concentrate on the logic of the
problem
• Structured in English language (Syntax/grammar)
• Each instruction is written on a separate line
• Written from top to bottom, with only one entry and one
exit
Cont…

Example: Calculate the area of a circle having the radius of

3 cm

Pseudocode:

• Get radius of a circle

• Calculate Area

• Display Area
Flowcharts
• “A graphic representation of a sequence of operations to
represent a computer program”
• Flowcharts show the sequence of instructions in a single
program.
Flowchart Symbols
Name Symbol Description

Oval Beginning or End of the Program

Parallelogram  Input/Output Operations

Rectangle Processing for example, Addition,

Multiplication, Division, etc.

Denotes Decision (or branching)

Diamond
for example IF-Then-Else

Arrow Denotes Direction of logic flow

Flowchart
Example: Calculate the area of a • START
circle having the radius of 3 cm.
Input
Radius (r)

Calculate Area =
3.14 * r * r

Display
Area

END
Summary

• What Is Computer?

• Computer Instructions and Programs

• Programming Languages

• Problem Solving Steps

• Pseudocode

• Flowcharts