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Tab, a Program Design Language for the classroom

Published:01 July 1976Publication History
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Abstract

A Program Design Language, or PDL, is a structured and program-like format for prose descriptions of computer algorithms. Syntax rules of the PDL, while few in number and informal in comparison with those of a compiled language, do impose a needed structure on the description, making the flow of control within the algorithm and its division into logically separate parts apparent to the reader.

This paper introduces a Program Design Language to be called Tab. The name is suggested by the primary principle of its design: that the grouping of statements into structures be governed by indentations to equally spaced tab positions.

References

  1. 1 Structured Programming Series, Volume VIII, Program Design Study Final Report, U.S. Air Force (RADC) Contract # F30602-74-C-0186, IBM Federal Systems Division FSD 74-0292, May 30, 1975.Google ScholarGoogle Scholar
  2. 2 Knuth, D.E. "Structured Programming with GO TO Statements", Computing Surveys 6, 4 (December 1974). Google ScholarGoogle ScholarDigital LibraryDigital Library
  3. 3 Ledgard, H.F. and Marcotty, M. "A Genealogy of Control Structures", Communications of the ACM 18, 11 (November 1975). Google ScholarGoogle ScholarDigital LibraryDigital Library
  4. 4 Wirth, N., "Program Development by Stepwise Refinement" Communications of the ACM 14, 4 (April 1971). Google ScholarGoogle ScholarDigital LibraryDigital Library

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  1. Tab, a Program Design Language for the classroom

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    • Published in

      cover image ACM SIGCSE Bulletin
      ACM SIGCSE Bulletin  Volume 8, Issue 3
      Proceedings of the 6th SIGCSE symposium on Computer science education
      July 1976
      146 pages
      ISSN:0097-8418
      DOI:10.1145/952991
      Issue’s Table of Contents
      • cover image ACM Conferences
        SIGCSE '76: Proceedings of the sixth SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education
        September 1976
        154 pages
        ISBN:9781450374453
        DOI:10.1145/800144

      Copyright © 1976 ACM

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      Association for Computing Machinery

      New York, NY, United States

      Publication History

      • Published: 1 July 1976

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