IDEs

IDEs

1. Integrated Development Environments

   • Python IDLE
   • Visual Studio
   • Greenfoot
   • Better than text editing tools
     • Like Notepad
     • Text editing tools only are for editing text, while IDEs have many useful tools.

2. Tools

   • Debuggers
     • Step through the code
       • and show memory/variable contents
       • Breakpoints
         • Helps to step through code, and to see if code ever reaches a certain point, after which the program will pause and let you view its memory.
     • Make fixing code easier
   • Built in Interpreter/Compiler
     • Make running code as simple as clicking a button.
   • Run-time environment
     • Program can be run inside of the IDE, making work more effective.
   • Find and Replace
     • Helps in bigger programs, to change name of variable for example.

3. Customization

   • Changing colour of code/background to suit programmer's needs

4. Helping with syntax

   • Syntax highlighting
     • Colour coding code to make it easier to code.
   • Syntax Autocomplete
     • The IDE suggests existing variable names/function names as you type them in
       • Makes it easy to remember functions/classes from standard libraries.

5. Shortcuts

   • These let you do specific actions quickly, such as:
     • Commenting code
     • Uncommenting code
     • Indenting code
     • Making specific functions
     • Compile and run code

6. Interprets error mesages from interpreter/compiler and tries to show you where you went wrong with your code.

7. Like every program, they interact with the Operating System

   • Operating System
     • Resource Management
       • In charge of the resoruces, making sure they work properly and any program can use them.
     • Provides libraries to interact with its 'resources'
     • Resources
       • RAM
       • Disk Space
       • Memory Pages
         • Usually requested with malloc/new keywords
         • Responsible for cleaning up memory after a program
           • Most programs do that, but some don't so to ensure stability, OS does it as well.
       • Hardware
       • Internet
     • Usually provides a GUI.
       • Some, like Linux, and Unix don't always include a Desktop Environment.
     • Drivers allow for interaction with hardware
     • Abstracts away very low-level hardware access in favor of using system libraries.
     • Provides a way to make GUI programs and CLI programs.
     • Some Operating Systems depend more or less on the Command Line Interface.
       • Unix/Linux depend on CLI
       • Windows depends on GUIs
     • Have to handle programs crashing
       • Only reason to crash the system should be if the user messed with system files.