HIGHER LEVEL PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE

Higher level programming languages are not written in binary or machine language, instead they are written in a more abstract form with English syntax and logical structures. This form is much easier to understand, use and implement. Thus higher level programming language must be translated to machine language prior to execution. Depending on the programming language employed, the program is either translated to machine code using either a compiler or an interpreter.

A compiler is a program that translates a higher level programming language into a separate machine language program. This machine language program can be stored and executed when needed.

An interpreter is a program that both translates and executes the instruction of a high level program simultaneously. Thus as the interpreter reads each line or individual instruction or code in the program, it converts it into machine instructions and it immediately executes it. This process repeats itself for every instruction in the program. Since the interpreters combine translation and execution they do not create a separate machine language program.

Higher level language programs are usually written in a text editor or IDEs and saved in the computer memory. Thereafter the program is translated into a machine language using a compiler or an interpreter.

The general characteristics of high level programs is as follows: higher  level language programs provide a higher level of abstraction from the hardware, which means that programmers can focus on the logic of the programs without bothering about the machine platform it is to run on. Higher level programming languages provide built in support for high level data structures such as arrays, lists and dictionaries. Many higher level programming languages support object oriented programming concepts such as encapsulation, inheritance and polymorphism.

Higher level programming languages have several advantages over lower level programming languages for the following reasons: Higher level programming language allow for faster development and prototyping. Higher level programming languages makes it easier to maintain and update software. Higher level programming languages results in improved productivity across various computer platforms.

Conversely, higher level programming languages results in slower performance, less control and their reliance on libraries and frameworks to provide functionality makes it more difficult to debug and maintain software.

There are many types of higher programming languages and they are as follows; procedural, object oriented, functional, scripting, declarative, event driven, visual and hybrid programming languages.

Procedural languages follow a step by step approach to programming and they use procedures or functions to organize code and they support variables, data types and control structures. Examples are C, C++, java, python and ruby.

Object oriented languages organize code using objects and classes and they support programming concepts like encapsulation, inheritance and polymorphism. Examples are java, C++, C#, python and ruby.

Functional programming emphasize the use of pure functions to perform computations and they support immutable data structures, recursions and higher order functions. Examples are Haskell, lisp, scheme, scala and clojure.

Scripting programming languages are designed for rapid development and execution of scripts and they support dynamic typing, flexible syntax and built in support for common tasks. Examples are python, ruby, Perl, PHP and JavaScript.

Declarative programming languages focus on specifying what the program should accomplish rather than how it should accomplish it. And they support logic programming, constraint programming and database querying. Examples are prolog, SQL and XML.

Event driven programming languages responds to events or user interactions and support asynchronous programming, callbacks and event handlers. Examples are JavaScript, python, and ruby.

Visual programming languages use visual representations such as diagrams or flow charts to create programs and they support drag and drop programming, visual debugging and interactive designs. Examples are scratch, blockly and labview.

Hybrid programming languages combine elements from multiple programming paradigms and support multiple programming styles such as object oriented and functional programming. Examples are python, ruby and scala.

The application of high level programming languages runs across various domains, such as; web development, mobile apps development, artificial intelligence and machine learning, data base management, gaming, scientific computing and enterprise software among a host of others.

The future of high level programming language is going to be driven  by the following trends and development; cloud computing, artificial intelligence and machine learning, server less computing, quantum computing , block chain and internet of things.

Generally in the near future more specialized languages will emerge with improved interoperability and increased focus on security.

 

SOURCES:

• Programming languages: principles and paradigms by Allen B. Tucker.
• The programming language by Robert W. Sebesta.
• Programming language design concept by David A. Watt.
• The art of computer programming by Donald Knuth.
• Types and programming languages by Benjamin C. Pierce.