Evolution of Programming Languages - Simplified Notes
FORTRAN (Formula Translation)
FORTRAN I (1954):
- Made for IBM machines.
- Supported loops, basic input/output, 6-letter names.
- No data types.
FORTRAN II (1958):
- Supported separate compilation.
FORTRAN IV, 77, 90 (1960-1990):
- Added data types, IF-ELSE, CASE, recursion, arrays.
LISP
- Used in AI, based on lambda calculus.
- Works with lists.
- Functional programming style.
COBOL
- Used in business & banking.
- First to support macros, long variable names.
- Structured into data divisions.
ALGOL 60
- Introduced block structure.
- Allowed recursion and parameter passing.
- Inspired modern languages like C.
BASIC
- Beginner friendly.
- Very simple, now evolved into Visual BASIC.
Evolution of Programming Languages - Simplified Notes
PL/I
- Developed by IBM.
- Supports dynamic types and storage.
- Memory assigned during execution.
PASCAL
- Made for teaching.
- Easy, small, structured.
- System-level language (1972).
- Powerful, low-level access.
- Still used in many areas.
PROLOG
- Based on logic, not procedures.
- Used in AI to infer answers.
- Slow but intelligent.
ADA
- Made for defense systems.
- Strong typing, concurrency, exception handling.
- Uses packages and generic units.
C++
- Created in 1980.
- Combines procedural (C) + OOP.
- Used for big apps, gaming.
JAVA
Evolution of Programming Languages - Simplified Notes
- Created in 1990 by Sun.
- Based on C++, but only OOP.
- No pointers, used for GUI, web, mobile.
Web Scripting Languages
- Examples: Perl, PHP, Python, JS, Ruby.
- Used for web development.
.NET (C#)
- Combines C++, Java, Delphi.
- Advanced types like delegates, enums.
- Rapidly evolving for Windows apps.
Hybrid Languages
- XSLT: Transforms XML documents.
- JSP: Java Server Pages for dynamic websites.