Programming Terminology
Address A specific location in memory.
API Application Programming Interface. Set of functions
or routines to access features of an OS or system.
Arguement A value needed for a subroutine or function.
Array A list of values with the same variable name.
e.g. Names$(20) = A list of 20 people's names.
Assembly Machine code instructions represented with mnemonics
for each instruction for easy reading.
Binary A base 2 number system using characters 0,1.
Also refers to compiled program files.
Buffer An area of memory reserved to store data.
Byte A value containing either unsigned value (0-255)
or an signed value (-127 to 128). Character values
are usually Bytes.
Concatenation Process of joining one or more strings to make another string.
Condition A check for equality or less/greater between values.
E.g. =, <> or !=, <, >, <=, >=
Character Can be any printable digit, letter, symbol or other
characters. See ASCII table for available characters.
Class A group of variables and subroutines (methods).
Comment A remark by the programmer to explain some part of the code.
Compile Process to convert source code into executable object code.
Condition An Expression that evaluates to true or false e.g A=5, B<6, D>=4
Constant A name of a value that never changes.
e.g. PI is always 3.14
Counter A variable which is incremented or decremented
in a loop. e.g. FOR..NEXT
Decision A condition in a program to execute one set
of instructions if it true or another set if
it is false. E.g. IF..THEN..ELSE
Declaration An instruction to inform the format of a variable etc.
E.g. Integer, Floating Point, String etc.
Directives Special instructions for the compiler's use only and not
included in the program itself.
Event A specific action accures such as a timed event
or a user pressing the mouse or selecting a menu option.
Expression A series of values, operators and functions to
produce a result. E.g. 5 * 6 + 10
Floating Point A decimal value e.g. 10.5, 1.7, 1034.0
Flowchart A diagram to show instructions and the flow from
one instruction to the next using boxes and lines.
Function One or more program instructions which will
eventually return a result.
E.g. SQR(9) function with return a 3.
Gadget An icon or button on a Window or Screen.
Hexademcimal A base 16 number system using characters 0-9,A-F.
Include Another program file which may contain lists of
constants, functions and subroutines needed for
the program.
Index The nth item of an array.
E.g. Names$(10) is the 10th item of Names array.
Inheritance A case where a class can inherit or access data and methods
of its parent class.
Instance An instance of a class is an area of memory to hold data
in a given class' format.For example, an Astra is an
instance of the Car class.
Integer A whole number e.g. 1,2,3,4,5.
Iteration A counted loop of program instructions.
e.g. A FOR loop.
Interpret Process when a program is run that each instruction is
converted to machine code when each line is to be executed.
Does not require compiling before running e.g. Arexx, Basic
Library A collection of functions and subroutines which can be called
from a program such as AmigaOS Libraries and Window's DLLs.
Libraries can be linked to a program or shared between programs.
Linked List A list of values linked by special pointers to the
next item in the list.
Linking Process to combine compiled object code with operating system
supplied libraries and startup code to produce a self-contained
executable program.
Loop A list of program instructions repeated either
with a count or a condition.
e.g. FOR..NEXT, DO WHILE, DO..UNTIL loops
Machine Code A Program written in the processor's native language.
Contains a list of numbers to represent instructions and data.
Menu A method to allow a user to select a task from a list.
Method A subroutine for used to process data in a given class.
Mnemonic A 'English' representation of a assembly instruction.
E.g. LD = Load, JMP = Jump, BE = Branch if Equal
Object An object can be anything, a vehicle, a car, a person, a shape,
an account. It can be anything. Objects can be 'members' of
other objects e.g. a car is a member of vehicles.
Object code A compiled program but not yet linked to libraries or added
startup code (see C).
Object Orientated A programming methodology which combines subroutines
and variables together into classes with a common purpose.
E.g. Account class has a Opening balance, Account number,
Current balance and can be Opened, Closed, Debited or
Credited to.
Octal A Base 8 number system.
Operator A simple function on one or more values.
E.g. + (add), - (subtract), * (multiply), / (divide)
^ (power).
Parameter A value needed for a subroutine or function.
Pointer A variable which points to an address in memory
and can be updated to point to neighbouring addresses.
Program A set of instructions to perform a given task.
e.g A game, a database, Word processor etc.
Prototype The syntax of a function or subroutine call including format
of any parameters required.
Pseudo Code A method in which program logic is written down using
English like commands instead of a specific programming language.
Queue A list of items that are added at one end and removed
from the other.
Screen A workspace on the display to show windows and applications.
Workbench is an example of a screen.
SDK Software Development Kit. Set of programs, tools, tutorials,
documentation and sample code to help develop programs
for a given system.
Sequence A list of program instructions run one after another.
Source code A collection of files when compiled produces a program.
Stack A list of values that are added and removed from the top only.
String A series of character values e.g. John, Bicycle, 01422 556780
Structured A program which is split into subroutines and functions each
with a specific purpose.
Subprogram See subroutine.
Subroutine A seperate group of instructions to perform a specific
process or function within a program which may be called
one or more times.
Substring Process to extract part of string from a string.
Syntax Format of command e.g. FOR var=first TO last [STEP n]
Threading A technique where two or more routines are split off and run at
the same time. Possible to do in some languages such as C, Java.
Variable A location in memory to store a number or a string.
Window A portion of the screen to display information in text or
graphical format.