Clms

CHAPTER ONE

1.1 Introduction

“The computer is…

Incredibly fast, accurate and stupid.

Man is…

Unbelievably slow, inaccurate and brilliant.

A marriage of the two is a force beyond calculations.” –author unknown

Computers are not intelligent. They are fast; they are able to calculate complex computations in seconds. Yet, being fast does not make computers brilliant. They can just be high-speed followers, nothing more. The truth is, Computers are only as good as the programs they are running. It is only as good as the instructions or programs man feed them.

Programming is the art and science of building computer programs. Computers are logical machines, and programming requires the same logical approach to designing, coding, testing and debugging a program.

The computing axiom states: “Garbage IN, Garbage OUT”. As a programmer, it is entirely up to him if he wanted the computer to “act intelligently” or not. The computer will just follow every ounce of instruction up to the last detail. So, if the programmer made a mistake in the program, it is expected that the computer will deliver a result that is also a mistake.

Programming involves different processes. It is not just confined to merely typing numbers and words using a specific programming language. Programming is also called software engineering, a multi-process for building programs.

Programming is a way to solve problems. Programming uses algorithm – a finite sequence of steps for solving a logical or mathematical problem, or performing a task (Understanding Structured programming, Penaflorida, 2006). To provide solutions to problems one must able to analyze and use critical thinking in the whole process of solving.

We all solve problems all the time. From simple to complex ones, we all have the own will on how to solve particular problems. One simple problem is deciding whether to do your...