AQA Computer Science GCSE
4.9 Computer Systems – Types of Programming Language
There are two basic types of programming language you need to know about:
- high-level languages - such as Python or C#
- low-level languages - machine code and assembly language
You need to know the differences between each type of language and why each might be used.
Types of programming language – slides from class
Programming languages – textbook double page spread
There is a little more detail in these slides as well:
Detail on types of programming language – slides
Assembly language
Assembly language (or assembly code) is a low-level programming language that can be used to program embedded systems directly.
How Assembly Code works – slides from class
You need to make sure that you know why programmers would use assembly code.
A specific example of exactly how assembly code works can be helpful:
How assembly code works – multiplying 6 by 7
Program Translators
All program code has to end up as machine code. This is the 1s and 0s that a CPU actually processes during the Fetch–Decode–Execute cycle.
You also need to know the differences between an assembler, an interpreter and a compiler and the reasons each are used.
Translators – slides from class
Translators detail – textbook double page spread
Table to compare translators – to print and complete