• Software is written as programs
• Programs are a complete set of instructions written in a programming language, which tell a computer how to carry out a task
• Programming languages are a set of codes for the step-by-step instructions that direct the computer to perform the tasks.
• Different languages have been developed to solve the tasks. Development is usually tied to the development of hardware and/or the development of the user’s needs.
• Programming languages have been divided into two kinds – Low-level languages and High-level languages.
• There are 5 generations of programming languages. Low-level Languages
• Are those understood directly by the computer
• Run more quickly than other types of programming languages
• Were the first types of language to be developed
• They are still in use today, especially where speed is required. For example for BIOS on the ROM chip
• There are two generations of low-level languages
High-level Languages
• Are more portable between different types of computers
• Are understood by humans but not by computers. They are a language more like English
• Must be translated into a code that can be understood by computers •Source code consists of the programming statements that are created by a programmer with a text editor or a visual programming tool and then saved in a file. •Compiling is the process of converting source code into object code by taking the instructions as a whole
•Linking is the process of combining together individual object code files to form a single executable