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The
C++Course
provides a general introduction to programming in C++.It is based on A.B. Downey's book,
 How to Think Like a Computer Scientist 
.Click herefor details.
C++Course Appendix GlossaryGlossary A...CIndex 
Glossary A...C
abstract classA set of classes. The abstract class specification lists the requirements a class must satisfy to beincluded in the set.abstract data typeA data type (usually a collection of objects) that is defined by a set of operations, but that can beimplemented in a variety of ways.abstract parameterA set of parameters that act together as a single parameter.abstractionThe process of interpreting a program (or anything else) at a higher level than what is literallyrepresented by the code.accessor functionA function that provides access (read or write) to a private instance variable.accumulatorA variable used inside a loop to accumulate a result, often by getting something added orconcatenated during each iteration."address of"operatoran operator that returns the address in memory of a variable.ADTabstract data type (see there)algorithmA set of instructions for solving a class of problems by a mechanical, unintelligent process.aliasingThe condition when two or more variables refer to the same object.argumentA value that you provide when you call a function. This value must have the same type as thecorresponding parameter.arrayA named collection of values, where all the values have the same type, and each value is identifiedby an index.assignmentA statement that assigns a value to a variable.associative arrayAnother name for a dictionary.AWTThe Abstract Window Toolkit, one of the biggest and most commonly-used Java packages.binary operatorAn operator that takes two operands.binary treeA tree in which each node refers to 0, 1, or 2 dependent nodes.bodyThe statements inside the loop.booleanA value or variable that can take on one of two states, often called
true
and
false
. In C++, booleanvalues can be stored in a variable type called bool.bottom-up designA method of program development that starts by writing small, useful functions and thenassembling them into larger solutions.bounding boxA common way to specify the coordinates of a rectangular area.bugAn error in a program.byte codeA special kind of object code used for Java programs. Byte code is similar to a low-level language,but it is portable, like a high-level language.callCause a function to be executed.cargoAn item of data contained in a node.chainingA way of joining several conditional statements in sequence.childOne of the nodes referred to by a node.circular bufferAn implementation of a queue using an array and indices of the first element and the next availablespace.class methodA method with the keyword static. Class methods are not invoked on objects and they do not have acurrent object.
 
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Last Update: 2005-Nov-22
 class variableA static variable declared outside of any method. It is accessible from any method.classIn general use, a class is a user-defined type with member functions. In C++, a class is a structurewith private instance variables. A class definition is also a template for a new type of object.clientA program that uses an ADT (or the person who wrote the program).collectionAny data structure that contains a set of items or elements.comparisonoperatorAn operator that compares two values and produces a boolean that indicates the relationshipbetween the operands.compileTo translate a program in a high-level language into a low-level language, all at once, in preparationfor later execution.complexity classA set of algorithms whose performance (usually run time) has the same order of growth.compositionThe ability to combine simple expressions and statements into compound statements andexpressions in order to represent complex computations concisely.concatenateTo join two operands end-to-end.conditional operatorAn operator that compares two values and produces a boolean that indicates the relationshipbetween the operands.conditionalA block of statements that may or may not be executed depending on some condition.constant referenceparameterA parameter that is passed by reference but that cannot be modified.constant timeAn operation whose run time does not depend on the size of the data structure.constructorA special function that creates a new object and initializes its instance variables.coordinateA variable or value that specifies a location in a two-dimensional graphical window.counterA variable used to count something, usually initialized to zero and then incremented.current objectThe object on which a member function is invoked. Inside the member function, we can refer to thecurrent object implicitly, or by using the keyword this.exceptionAn error in a program that makes it fail at run-time. Also called a run-time error.
The
C++Course
provides a general introduction to programming in C++.It is based on A.B. Downey's book,
 How to Think Like a Computer Scientist 
.Click herefor details.
C++Course Appendix GlossaryGlossary D...IIndex 
Glossary D...I
dead codePart of a program that can never be executed, often because it appears after a return statement.debuggingThe process of finding and removing any of the three kinds of errors.declarationA statement that creates a new variable and determines its type.decrementDecrease the value of a variable by one. The decrement operator in C++ is --.deep equalityEquality of values. Two references that point to objects that have the same value.deletean operator that returns the memory pointed to by a pointer to the free store (a special pool of freememory that each program has)delimiterA character that is used to separate tokens, like the punctuation in a natural language.deterministicA program that does the same thing every time it is run.development planA process for developing a program. In this chapter, I demonstrated a style of development basedon developing code to do simple, specific things, and then encapsulating and generalizing.dictionaryAnother name for a table.The method C++ uses to refer to member variables and functions. The format is
 
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dot notationclassName.memberName.dynamic memoryallocationthe explicit allocation of contiguous blocks of memory at any time in a program.elementOne of the values in a vector. The [] operator selects elements of a vector.encapsulateTo divide a large complex program into components (like functions) and isolate the componentsfrom each other (for example, by using local variables).encodeTo represent one set of values using another set of values, by constructing a mapping between them.entryAn element in a table that contains a key-value pair.exceptionA run time error. Exceptions cause the execution of a program to terminate.executableAnother name for object code that is ready to be executed.explicitAnything that is spelled out completely. Within a nonmember function, all references to theinstance variables have to be explicit.expressionA combination of variables, operators and values that represents a single result value. Expressionsalso have types, as determined by their operators and operands.FIFO"first in, first out," a queueing discipline in which the first member to arrive is the first to beremoved.fill-in functionA function that takes an "empty" object as a parameter and fills it its instance variables instead of generating a return value.flagA variable (usually type bool) that records a condition or status information.floating-pointA type of variable (or value) that can contain fractions as well as integers. There are a few floating-point types in C++; the one we use in this book is double.formal languageAny of the languages people have designed for specific purposes, like representing mathematicalideas or computer programs. All programming languages are formal languages.fractalA kind of image that is defined recursively, so that each part of the image is a smaller version of thewhole.function declarationA statement that declares the interface to a function without providing the body. Declarations of member functions appear inside structure definitions even if the definitions appear outside.functionA named sequence of statements that performs some useful function. Functions may or may nottake parameters, and may or may not produce a result.functionalprogramming styleA style of program design in which the majority of functions are pure.garbage collectionThe process of finding objects that have no references and reclaiming their storage space.generalizeTo replace something unnecessarily specific (like a constant value) with something appropriatelygeneral (like a variable or parameter). Generalization makes code more versatile, more likely to bereused, and sometimes even easier to write.generic datastructureA kind of data structure that can contain data of any type.hash codeThe integer value that corresponds to a given value.hash functionA function that maps values of a certain type onto integers.hash tableA particularly efficient implementation of a table.heapsortYet another sorting algorithm.helper functionOften a small function that does not do anything enormously useful by itself, but which helpsanother, more useful, function.high-level languageA programming language like C++ that is designed to be easy for humans to read and write.histogramA vector of integers where each integer counts the number of values that fall into a certain range.implementationThe body of a function, or the details of how a function works.implicitAnything that is left unsaid or implied. Within a member function, you can refer to the instancevariables implicitly (without naming the object).incrementIncrease the value of a variable by one. The increment operator in C++ is ++. In fact, that's whyC++ is called C++, because it is meant to be one better than C.indexA variable or value used to select one of the members of an ordered set, like a character from astring, or the element of a vector.infinite loopA loop whose condition is always true.infinite recursionA function that calls itself recursively without every reaching the base case. Eventually an infiniterecursion will cause a run-time error.
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