Iteration Structure Though Programming Can Involve Complex

Iteration Structure

Though programming can involve complex algorithms and high-level mathematics, and ultimately of course all programming languages depend on complex interfaces with the circuitry and hardware of the computer as well as the complexities and machinations of the source code, not all or even most features of common programs are actually all that complex or difficult to design, create, and implement. There are many parts of programs that are fairly simple architectural features, and even though these features can be quite complex in the ways in which they can be linked together and used to derive specific actions or results, they are ultimately fairly basic in their design and their operations (Dunphy 2011; Schmalz 1997). The term "control structures" refers to a variety of such architectural chunks that re used to tell a program where to go and what to do next, as very few programs function in a purely linear fashion (Soulle 2010). This paper will focus on one specific type of control structure and a possible application for it: the iteration structure.

Iteration structures are often simply called loops, as this is in fact what they are -- they are structures within a program that call for the repetition of the same series of steps/manipulations to take place until certain criteria are met (Soulle 2010; Strath 2011). This criteria could even consist simply of the number of iterations completed -- perhaps the program needs to generate twenty random numbers and manipulate them in the same way; the iteration structure would be designed with some sort of counting mechanism and would repeat or "loop" until that mechanism gave a measurement of twenty (Strath 2011; Schmalz 1997).

Iteration structure s are very common features in many different applications, and as such they are basic parts of almost every programming language -- certainly every language that is in wide use (Soulle 2010; Dunphy 2011; Strath 2011). In Pascal, the "While loop, which is also called the "while...do" loop or conditional loop, repeats as long as a certain condition as true: while x, do y, essentially (Schmalz 1997). There are also "Bock If" loops, which allow for multiple logical predicates to be analyzed by the program to determine future actions/manipulations by creating a series of repeatable if/then sequences (Schmalz 1997). "While" loops are very similar in their applications and mode of use in C++ programming; there are also "do-while" loops, which are very similar but which test for the "while" condition after the manipulation rather than before, ensuring that at least one iteration will be required very time the program reaches the loop point (Dunphy 2011). There are also loops that simply repeat a specific number of times, as mentioned above.

These various types of loops have countless different applications, and in fact most programs need iteration structures at various points in their operation in order to be space efficient programs and time efficient for programmers (Soulle 2010; Schmalz 1997). Video game graphic and music displays as well as movement algorithms and a variety of other features depend heavily on iteration structures, and they are also used in many input fields for a variety f reasons (Soulle 2010; Strath 2011). They can also be used in financial programs, such as the numerous stock-watching and -- advising programs now on the market.