Question

How can you apply the concepts of readability, reusability, and reliability.

Answer 1

To evaluate a programming language we look into the three characteristics of the language namely

1.)Readability 2.)Reusability 3.)Reliability

--> Readability : - A language is machine readable if it can be translated efficiently into a form that the computer can execute.

Five characteristics of a programming language that contribute readability are :-Simplicity, orthogonality, control statements, Data types and structures, Syntax.

Simplicity: -Look if the language has a manageable set of features and constructs, minimal feature multiplicity: the existence of multiple ways of doing the same operation

Orthogonality: -See if the language has a relatively small set of primitive constructs can be combined in a relatively small number of ways. (A set of features/constructs is said to be orthogonal if those features can be used freely in combination with each other.)

Data types and control statements: - A language should have a predefined set of data types and control statements.

Syntax:-

•Identifier forms: flexible composition with respect to length

•Special words and methods of forming compound statements

•Form and meaning: Form and meaning must be same. For example the use of keyword static in a function and outside a function is not same.

--> Reusability:- Using of already developed code according to our requirement without writing from the scratch.

example consider C program:

you have one method called factorial() with 10 or 20 lines of code.

when ever you want to calculate factorial you no need to write the function again

you can just call with the function there you used the code this is called code re-usability.

best way is :

write all the required functions in a separate file.

when ever u want to use those functions you just inherit the file and u can use it .

code re-usability decreases the line of code and compile time as you compile the code only one time and use it multiple times.

--> Reliability: -A program is said to be reliable if it performs to its specifications under all conditions.

Evaluation Criteria (Reliability):-

•Type checking

Testing for type errors (as early as possible)

•Exception handling

Intercept run-time errors and take corrective measures, – and then continue

E.g. in Ada, C++, Java, etc.

•Aliasing

Presence of two or more distinct referencing methods for the same memory location

•Readability and writability

A language that does not support “natural” ways of expressing an algorithm will require the use of “unnatural” approaches, and hence reduced reliability