Chapter 7 - High and Low-level Languages

Question 1

What is a computer program?

Answer 1

a list of instructions that enable a computer to perform a specific task

Question 2

What is a translator?

Answer 2

convert a program into binary instructions that a computer can understand

Question 3

What do high-level languages allow a programmer to do?

Answer 3

focus on the problem to be sold with no knowledge of the hardware and the instruction set of the computer that will use the program

Question 4

What type of language is portable and can be used on different types of computer?

Answer 4

high-level languages

Question 5

What do low-level languages relate to?

Answer 5

the specific architecture and hardware of a particular type of computer

Question 6

What are assembly languages?

Answer 6

low-level programming language

needs to be translated into machine code by an assembler

Question 7

What is machine code?

Answer 7

binary instructions that a computer understands - no translation is required

Question 8

What are the three types of translators?

Answer 8

compilers
interpreters
assemblers

Question 9

What are compilers?

Answer 9

a computer program that translates a program written in high-level language into machine code
so it can be directly used by a computer to perform a required task

Question 10

What are interpreters?

Answer 10

a computer program that reads a statement from a program written in a high-level language, performs the action specified and then does the same with the next statement

Question 11

What are assemblers?

Answer 11

a computer programs that translates a program written in an assembly language into machine code
so that it can be directly used by a computer to perform a required task

Question 12

What do compilers do?

Answer 12

translates a high level language program into machine code
executable file of machine code produced
one HLL statement –> several machine code statements
compiled programs used without compilers
distributed for general use

Question 13

What do interpreters do?

Answer 13

executes a HLL one statement at a time
no executable file of machine code produced
one HLL statement –> needs several machine code instructions
interpreted programs need interpreters
used when a program is being developed

Question 14

What do assemblers do?

Answer 14

translates a low level language into machine code
executable file of machine code produced
one low level language statement –> one machine code instruction
assembled programs used without assemblers
distributed for general purpose