Introduction to the Basic Building Blocks of a Computer Program

Overview

When it comes to programming, the most fundamental concept is the sequence. The sequence indicates what we do and when we do it, one after the other. However, when we take a closer look, we find that there’s more to this—in this chapter, we’ll learn what that is.

We’ll also use the concept of a sequence to decide what steps a program will need to perform in order to accomplish its overall task. Because it can be tough to have both an overview of everything that needs to be done and look at all the details at the same time, we’ll require a concept that can assist us. Thinking of the sequence in which the program needs to do things, for instance, could be such a tool.

When learning how to program, one problem many people face is how to transform an idea into something that can be used. Where should we start? In this chapter, we’ll learn that we can use the concept of sequential thinking to break down an idea into smaller tasks that we can then deal with. We’ll also see that we can apply the same concept to the code that we write to ensure that we do things in the right order.