What does someone need to write programs?
Computer programming can be used for various purposes, but what does someone need to write programs?
This lesson focuses on:
- What does someone need to write programs?
- Accessing the necessary tools needed to write programs
- Development environments
What does someone need to write programs?
To write programs two things are necessary:
- A text editor
The text editor you use to write programs can be anything from a plain text editor with only a few functions to a complex development environment.
- A software tool to turn your source code into meaningful data that the computer can understand
The software tool you use for this task can be a compiler and/or an interpreter, depending on the language you are working with and/or your needs. For example, if you are working with Javascript, you can use the interpreter that is built into a web browser or if you are working with C, you can download a C compiler and/or interpreter to execute your code.
Accessing the necessary tools needed to write programs
Accessing a text editor in Windows:
If you are using the Windows operating system, the text editor you should start with is notepad. To access notepad, go to Start -> Programs -> Accessories -> Notepad.
Accessing a text editor in Linux:
If you are using the Linux operating system, the text editor you should start with is nano. To access nano, open a console window, then type nano and press enter.
Acquiring a compiler/interpreter:
To acquire a compiler and/or interpreter for whatever language you are working with, you can go to any search engine and enter a search for it. There are many free compilers/interpreters available for many languages. If you are working with a web language such as Javascript or VBScript, an interpreter for such languages is built right into a web browser, and you do not have download one.
Development environments
A development environment, also known as an integrated development environment is a software tool that provides various functions and features that simplify writing programs.
There are many advantages to using such environments. One such advantage is code organization. Development environments help display code in an organized fashion which makes it easy to navigate, read, and understand. A second advantage is the sometimes built in reference to the language within the development environment. Some development environments have a built in reference to various languages commands and codes which can be very useful for a programmer who may forget something in the language. A third advantage of using development environments is being able to group a related set of files under one project. This makes it easier to find the files in the future.
While there are development environments for various computer programming languages which make things easier for the programmer, beginners should not use them. The reason for this is that if beginners use development environments, they will never really learn whatever language they are trying to learn - beginners should start from the bottom and work their way up, writing source code without any additional help from software (development environments). Once a beginner feels comfortable with a language, they can move on to using a development environment for the language.
