FORTRAN

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FORTRAN

• Boz

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Before FORTRAN

• Machine language and assembly code.
• Programmers had many problems to overcome.
• Lack of instruction sets
• Primitive stream arrangements
• Extremely limited number representation

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Before FORTRAN

• Assembly and Machine required deep knowledge of
  how computers worked
• Looping was complicated and disorganized
• Few types, mainly int and char
• Programming was cryptic, as was debugging

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FORTRAN FORmula TRANslator

• John Backus
• Designed originally for use with the IBM 704.
• The compiler was optimized
• Had many skeptics
• Much easier to learn then Machine code or Assembly

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FORTRAN FORmula TRANslator

• Statically Typed
• Compiled (some iterations are still translated)
• Originally a spaghetti/procedural language
  (FORTRAN 66/77)
• Recent and current versions allow vector and
  object programming (FORTRAN 90/2003)

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Who Used it and Why?

• initially by programmers using highly numerical
  intensive programs.
• Once people recognized its effectiveness and ease
  of use, it quickly became the standard for all of
  IBM computers
• Other imperative languages were created, but
  FORTRAN became a

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What was so special about FORTRAN?

• Was the first higher level language
• Error checking was much clearer
• Instead of cryptic assembly or machine code,
  programmers could use algebraic notation
• FORTRAN organized looping and other complex data
  types

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Bibliography

• Backus, John. The History of FORTRAN I, II, and
  III. ACM SIGPLAN Notices 13.8 (1978) 165-180.
• Constable, George, ed. Understanding Computers
  Computer Languages. Time-Life Books, Inc, 1986.
• Fortran. Wikipedia. 4 April. 2006. 4 April.
  2006. lthttp//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortrangt
• Horowitz, Ellis. Fundamentals of Programming
  Languages. Maryland Computer Science Press,
  1984.
• Sebesta, Robert. Concepts of Programming
  Languages. California Cummings Publishing
  Company, Inc. 1989.