High Level Languages

Over time we produced easier to use languages which are much closer to plain English, and therefore much easier to write, read and understand. We refer to these languages as being "High Level".

High level languages include: Python, JavaScript, C, C#, Swift and Java.

Each high level language uses keywords, for example: print, input, if, else, while.

Unlike a mnemonic, a keyword does not directly link to machine code and will need to be translated to machine code. When translating a keyword to a machine code instruction one keyword may produce many machine code instructions.

Due to not being linked directly to one instruction set, high level languages can be portable between different hardware configurations. For example an application written in C# can be ran on a variety of different types of CPUs and hardware platforms.

Advantages of High Level Languages

• Programs written in High Level Languages can be portable between different hardware, saving developers time if a program needs to work on different types of computer systems
• it is easier to read, write and understand High Level Language due to plain English keywords

Disadvantages of High Level Languages

• The disconnect between High Level Langauges and machine code means that programs use more memory and more CPU cycles
• Programs written in High Level Langauges must be translated down to machine code in order to run on a CPU