2.5.1 Languages

Question 1

What are the characteristics of high level languages? [3]

Answer 1

Close to english [1] work on a range of devices [1] need to be translated [1]

Question 2

What are the characteristics of low level languages? [3]

Answer 2

Close to binary [1] may only work on one type of device [1] may not need to be translated [1]

Question 3

Why does code need to be translated? [2]

Answer 3

The processor can only understand machine code. [1] code is usually not written in machine code, so needs to be translated. [1]

Question 4

What are the characteristics of a compiler? [3]

Answer 4

Converts code to low level in one go [1] Creates an executable file [1] users have no access to source code once compiled [1]

Question 5

What are the characteristics of an interpreter? [3]

Answer 5

Converts code to low level line by line [1] Stops running when it finds an error [1] It’s usually quicker to interpret than to compile [1]