ACTIVITY 5A

1 a) i) Explain why a computer needs an 3 A computer user has a number of important

5
operating system. issues, listed below.
ii) Name two management tasks carried out For each issue, name a utility which could help
by the operating system. solve it. Give a reason for each choice.
b) A new program is to be written in a high a) The user wants to send a number of
level language. The developer has decided very large attachments by email, but the

5.2 Language translators

to use DLL files in the design of the new recipient cannot accept attachments greater
program. than 20 MB.
i) Explain what is meant by a DLL file. b) The user has accidentally deleted files in the
How does this differ from a static library past. It is essential that this cannot happen
routine? in the future.
ii) Describe two potential drawbacks of c) The user has had their computer for a
using DLL files in the new program. number a years. The time to access and
2 A company produces glossy geography retrieve data from the hard disk drive is
magazines. Each magazine is produced using increasing.
a network of computers where thousands of d) Last week, the user clicked on a link in an
photographs and drawings need to be stored. email from a friend, since then the user’s
The computers also have an external link to the computer is running slowly, files are being
internet. lost, and they are receiving odd messages.
Name, and describe the function of, three utility e) Some of the files on the user’s HDD have
programs the company would use on all its corrupted and will not open and this is
computers. affecting the performance of the HDD.

5.2 Language translators

WHAT YOU SHOULD ALREADY KNOW
Try these two questions before you read the 2 Most modern language translators offer an
second part of this chapter: Integrated Development Environment (IDE)
1 a) Name two types of language translator. for program development.
b) Identify a method, other than using a a) Which IDE are you using?
translator, of executing a program written b) Describe five features offered by the IDE
in a high-level language. you use.
c) Which feature do you find most useful?
Why is it useful to you?

Key terms
Translator – the systems software used to translate Interpreter – a computer program that analyses and
a source program written in any language other than executes a program written in a high-level language line
machine code. by line.
Compiler – a computer program that translates a Prettyprinting – the practice of displaying or printing
source program written in a high-level language to well set out and formatted source code, making it
machine code or p-code, object code. easier to read and understand.

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 Integrated development environment (IDE) – a suite of Single stepping – the practice of running a program

5 programs used to write and test a computer program

written in a high-level programming language.
Syntax error – an error in the grammar of a source
one line/instruction at a time.
Breakpoint – a deliberate pause in the execution
of a program during testing so that the contents of
program. variables, registers, and so on can be inspected to aid
Logic error – an error in the logic of a program. debugging.
Debugging – the process of finding logic errors in a Report window – a separate window in the run-time
computer program by running or tracing the program. environment of the IDE that shows the contents of
variables during the execution of a program.
5 System software

5.2.1 Translation and execution of programs

Instructions in a program can only be executed when written in machine code
and loaded into the main memory of a computer. Programming instructions
written in any programming language other than machine code must be
translated before they can be used. The systems software used to translate
a source program written in any language other than machine code are
translators. There are three types of translator available, each translator
performs a different role.

Assemblers
Programs written in assembly language are translated into machine code by
an assembler program. Assemblers either store the program directly in main
memory, ready for execution, as it is translated, or they store the translated
program on a storage medium to be used later. If stored for later use, then
a loader program is also needed to load the stored translated program into
main memory before it can be executed. The stored translated program can be
executed many times without being re-translated.
Every different type of computer/chip has its own machine code and assembly
language. For example, MASM is an assembler that is used for the X86 family
of chips, while PIC and GENIE are used for microcontrollers. Assembly language
programs are machine dependent; they are not portable from one type of
computer/chip to another.
Here is a short sample PIC assembly program:
movlw B’00000000’
tris PORTB
EXTENSION movlw B’00000011’
ACTIVITY 5C movwf PORTB
Find out what stop: goto stop
task this very
short sample PIC Assembly language programs are often written for tasks that need to be
assembly program
speedily executed, for example, parts of an operating system, central heating
is performing.
system or controlling a robot.

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 Compilers and interpreters
Programs written in a high-level language can be either translated into
machine code by a compiler program, or directly executed line-by-line using an
interpreter program.
5
Compilers usually store the translated program (object program) on a storage
medium ready to be executed later. A loader program is needed to load the
stored translated program into main memory before it can be executed.
The stored translated program can be executed many times without being
retranslated. The program will only need to be retranslated when changes are

5.2 Language translators

made to the source code.
With an interpreter, no translated program is generated in main memory or
EXTENSION stored for later use. Every line in a program is interpreted then executed each
time the program is run.
ACTIVITY 5D
High-level language programs are machine independent, portable and can be
Find out about run on any type of computer/chip, provided there is a compiler or interpreter
three more high- available. For example, Java, Python and Visual Basic® (VB) are high-level
level programming languages often used for teaching programming.
languages that are
being used today. The similarities and differences between assemblers, compilers and interpreters
are shown in Table 5.3.
Assembler Compiler Interpreter
Source program written in assembly language high-level language high-level language
Machine dependent yes no no
Object program generated yes, stored on disk or in yes, stored on disk or in no, instructions are
main memory main memory executed under the control
of the interpreter
Each line of the source one machine code many machine code many machine code
program generates instruction, one to one instructions, instruction instructions, instruction
translation explosion explosion

▲ Table 5.3 Similarities and differences between assemblers, compilers and interpreters

5.2.2 Pros and cons of compiling or interpreting a program

Both compilers and interpreters are used for programs written in high-level
languages. Some integrated development environments (IDEs) have both
available for programmers, since interpreters are most useful in the early stages
of development and compilers produce a stand-alone program that can be
executed many times without needing the compiler.
Table 5.4 shows the pros (in the blue cells) and cons (in the white cells) of
compilers and interpreters.
Compiler Interpreter
The end user only needs the executable code, therefore, the The end user will need to purchase a compiler or an
end user benefits as there is no need to purchase a compiler interpreter to translate the source code before it is used.
to translate the program before it is used.
The developer keeps hold of the source code, so it cannot The developer relinquishes control of the source code,
be altered or extended by the end user, therefore, the making it more difficult to charge for upgrades and
developer benefits as they can charge for upgrades and alterations. Since end users can view the source code, they
alterations. could potentially use the developer’s intellectual property.
➔

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 Compiler Interpreter

5 Compiled programs take a shorter time to execute as

translation has already been completed and the machine
code generated may have been optimised by the compiler.
An interpreted program can take longer to execute than
the same program when compiled, since each line of the
source code needs to be translated before it is executed
every time the program is run.
Compiled programs have no syntax or semantic errors. Interpreted programs may still contain syntax or semantic
errors if any part of the program has not been fully tested,
these errors will need to be debugged.
The source program can be translated on one type of Interpreted programs cannot be interpreted on one type
5 System software

computer then executed on another type of computer. of computer and run on another type of computer.
A compiler finds all errors in a program. One error detected It is easier to develop and debug a program using an
can mean that the compiler finds other dependent errors interpreter as errors can be corrected on each line and
later on in the program that will not be errors when the the program restarted from that place, enabling the
first error is corrected. Therefore, the number of errors programmer to easily learn from any errors.
found may be more than the actual number of errors.
Untested programs with errors may cause the computer to Untested programs should not be able to cause the
crash. computer to crash.
The developer needs to write special routines in order to Partial results can be viewed during development,
view partial results during development, making it more enabling the developer to make informed decisions about
difficult to assess the quality of particular sections of a section of code, for example whether to continue,
code. modify, or scrap and start again.
End users do not have access to the source code and If an interpreted program is purchased, end users have all the
the run-time libraries, meaning they are unable to source code and the run-time libraries, enabling the program
make modifications and are reliant on the developer for to be modified as required without further purchase.
updates and alterations.

▲ Table 5.4 Pros (blue cells) and cons (white cells) of compilers and interpreters.

5.2.3 Partial compiling and interpreting

In order to achieve shorter execution times, many high-level languages
programs use a system that is partially compilation and partially interpretation.
The source code is checked and translated by a compiler into object code.
The compiled object code is a low-level machine independent code, called
intermediate code, p-code or bytecode. To execute the program, the object
code can be interpreted by an interpreter or compiled using a compiler.
For example, Java and Python programs can be translated by a compiler into a
set of instructions for a virtual machine. These instructions, called bytecode,
are then interpreted by an interpreter.
Below are examples of Java and Python intermediate code (bytecode):

Source code:
public class HelloWorld
{
public static void main(String[] args)
{
System.out.println("Hello World");
}
}

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