High-level programming languages are designed to provide a more abstract and user-friendly way of writing computer programs. They are characterized by their use of natural language-like syntax and built-in abstractions that simplify the coding process. They abstract many low-level details, allowing programmers to focus on solving problems rather than dealing with hardware-specific intricacies.
Example high level languages include Python, JavaScript, Ruby, C++, SQL
What is the definition of a high-level language?
Abstraction
High-level languages provide a high level of abstraction from the hardware, allowing programmers to work with concepts closer to human thought processes rather than machine-level instructions.
Abstraction
Readability
High-level languages use natural language-like syntax, making code more readable and easier to understand for programmers. This readability helps reduce errors and improve maintainability.
Which feature is common in most high-level languages?
Ease of Use
High-level languages offer built-in functions and libraries that simplify common programming tasks. This reduces the amount of code that programmers need to write, enhancing productivity.
What is the purpose of high-level languages in program execution?
Rich Standard Libraries
High-level languages often come with extensive standard libraries that provide pre-written code for a wide range of tasks, such as file handling, network communication, and data manipulation.
High-level programming languages often provide functions and libraries.
Automatic Memory Management
Many high-level languages, like Python and Java, feature automatic memory management, which simplifies memory allocation and deallocation, reducing the risk of memory-related errors like memory leaks.
High-level programming languages provide memory management.
Platform Independence
High-level languages abstract away platform-specific details, making it possible to write code that works on various operating systems and hardware architectures. This means that programs written in high level languages are usually highly portable from one system to another.
A high-level programming language allows for across different platforms.
Limitations of High Level Languages
Execution Speed
High-level languages are generally less efficient in terms of execution speed compared to low-level languages like assembly or C.
Memory Usage
High-level languages may consume more memory than low-level languages because of the overhead introduced by features like automatic memory management and extensive standard libraries.
Lack of Low-Level Control
High-level languages abstract away low-level hardware details, which means developers have limited control over system resources like memory and hardware registers.
Resource Intensive
High-level languages may consume more system resources (CPU and memory) than low-level languages, which can be a concern for resource-constrained environments or embedded systems.
Which of the following is a disadvantage of high-level programming languages?