Generations of Programming Language

Generations of Programming Language

1. First Generation

   • Made in the 1940s for the first computers
     • They are machine dependent (do not work on other types of computer)
   • Are the lowest level of instruction
     • No translation is needed
     • Represents data using binary digits (0s and 1s)
       • Shown in sets of 8 binary digits to make the conversion to hexidecimal easier

2. Second Generation

   • Made in the 1950s
   • Are machine dependant (do not work on other types of computer)
   • Uses mneumonics such as A for ADD or MP for multiply instead of binary digits

3. Third Generation

   • High-level languages developed in the 1950s - 1980s
     • Much more English-like than languages before it
   • Includes C, BASIC, FORTRAN, COBOL and Pascal
   • Allowed for code to be more portable as the same source program could be used on different machines

4. Fourth Generation

   • Application development tools (very high-level language) made in the 1970s - 1980s
     • Very English-like and problem oriented
     • Sometimes known as declarative languages as the programmer simply defines what needs to be solved by the language
   • Specify relashionships between objects rather than coding each object seperately