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Programming languages are similar to spoken languages, only instead of the primary function being to converse with a human, the primary function of a computer language is to communicate with a computer or machine. Let's explore some of the languages available.
Programming languages are similar to
spoken languages,
0:00
only instead of the primary function being
to converse with humans,
0:03
a computer language's primary function is
to communicate with a computer or machine.
0:07
And similar to spoken and written
languages around the world,
0:12
there are many programming languages to
choose from.
0:16
[SOUND] Java, JavaScript, PHP, Python, and
0:19
Ruby are just a few popular and widely
used languages.
0:22
Another one I should point out is [SOUND]
Racket, my first programming language.
0:27
[SOUND] And even one named Joy.
0:31
[SOUND] If you're feeling really jealous
right now, if your name is Alice, Babbage,
0:33
Chuck, Claire, Dylan, Elan, Franz, George,
Hal, Hamilton, Hartmann, Hugo,
0:38
Janus, Jean, Julia, Karel, Lisa, Lua,
Mary, Max, Maya, Mirah, Miranda,
0:44
Moby, Nial, Orwell, Pascal, Perl, Rex,
Shakespeare, Tex, Tom, or Yorick,
0:50
then you're in good company and there's a
programming language with your name on it.
0:56
But don't [SOUND] worry, if you're a
bigwig, feel utter bliss, euphoria,
1:01
hope or kind of jovial, brew your own
coffee, own a bistro, or like curry or
1:07
corn, if you feel really cool, groovy,
nice, or pure, and find Godiva tasty,
1:12
think emeralds, opals, and rubies are
pretty, fancy falcons, kaleidoscopes,
1:17
or squirrels, [SOUND] have ever been to
the GAP, scored a goal, think Oz is real,
1:23
eaten pizza, are a total powerhouse, love
the group Monty Python, had a scratch,
1:29
believe in your self, gone for a sail,
thrown a snowball, had a cup of tea,
1:34
worn a tie, or been to a tutor, there's a
programming language for you too.
1:40
[SOUND] So, why are there so many
programming languages, you ask?
1:45
Well, one reason is that from time to
time, programmers come across areas for
1:48
improvement in a language, and instead of
just staying the path,
1:53
they deviate in an attempt to improve upon
the paths.
1:56
[SOUND] One famous example of this was
rear admiral Grace Hopper.
2:00
She came up with the idea that programming
could be independent of the machine.
2:03
[SOUND] She did this by creating one of
the first programming languages, COBOL,
2:08
[SOUND] and a compiler to turn COBOL into
machine code.
2:13
Even in the 1950s, she knew that the key
to opening up
2:17
computing to a wider audience was going to
be through the development of
2:20
programming languages [SOUND] that could
be understood and
2:24
used by people who were neither
mathematicians nor computer experts.
2:27
[SOUND] When we say programmer-friendly
languages,
2:32
we're making the distinction between
lower-level machine languages and
2:35
higher-level languages, like Ruby or
Python.
2:39
Machine language is the lowest-level
language because it
2:41
works directly with the hardware without
using a compiler or interpreter.
2:44
The instructions written in machine code
are unique to its CPU type.
2:48
Consequently, different computers use
different machine languages.
2:54
Machine code runs very quickly and
2:57
has a much smaller memory footprint than a
higher-level language.
2:59
Because they're less abstract than
higher-level languages, they also look and
3:04
read quite technical and are considered
more difficult to use by most programmers.
3:08
Higher-level languages, on the other hand,
are much more readable because they
3:14
are more abstracted from the lower-level
machine code.
3:18
They use common language in the code to
make development more programmer friendly.
3:21
Another nice thing about high-level
programming languages is
3:25
that you can often write it once and run
it on many devices.
3:30
[SOUND] In order to get from a
higher-level language to
3:34
a [SOUND] lower-level language that
hardware can understand,
3:37
you have to perform an operation called
compiling.
3:40
[SOUND] Compiling is the process of
changing a program written in
3:43
a higher level language into a binary
machine language which can be
3:47
understood by the computer.
3:51
[SOUND] Grace Hopper's idea of making
programming languages more
3:52
programming friendly has never faded.
3:57
Routinely, when advanced programmers see
room for improvement, updates are made and
3:59
programming languages emerge and evolve.
4:04
Python has taken this lesson to heart, as
well as Apple, who recently came out
4:07
with Swift, the more programmer-friendly
successor to Objective-C.
4:11
So which higher-level programming language
should you start with?
4:15
To answer that,
4:19
let's learn a little more about what some
of the languages we've been talking about
4:20
do and how they work together to build
mobile, web, and desktop applications.
4:24
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