Software engineering is the field of engineering that deals with the study, principles and procedures
regarding development of software. The aim is to build effective software to run on computers
efficiently. It takes into account that what type of software will run efficiently on which type of
computer. It deals with each and every aspect of developing effective software.
Writing computer programs or programming is the procedure of taking data, perform calculation using
some algorithm and encoding it into documentation, in the form a code, with the goal that it can be
executed by a PC. In order that program executed by computer, it must be written in some language
understandable by pc. Computers understand machine language which is usually a string of binary
number s that is zeroes and ones. There are many different machine languages but the basic two types
are high level language and low level language.
High-level language is more users friendly; it contains such phrases and words understandable by
humans. Most common high level languages include C LANGUAGE, BASIC, FORTAN and PASCAL. High
level language is preferred when the aim is to create user friendliness.
Low level language is a bit difficult to comprehend but it has the benefit of precision. The codes written
in low level language are very intelligent and free from error and are precise too. Low level language is
preferred when the aim is to obtain accuracy and precision.
Programming and software engineering are two different disciplines. The terms Programmer and
Software Engineer are often used interchangeably but they are not the same persons in. A programmer
knows how to code and might have the specialized skillsrequired to produce an intelligent code. A
software engineer follows a series of steps and has a defined work flow procedure. He moves step by
step following different techniques and procedures. He interacts with other software engineers and his
team members and then eventually produces a software, as a result of long and detailed work. A
programmer tends to work alone. A software engineer works in a team. Effective software is a result of
great team activity.
A Programmer composes a complete program whereas a software engineer composes a software part
that will be incorporated with that of produced by other software engineers. Programming or coding is
just the one stage of software development whereas software development comprises of a number
stages.
A software engineer has attained an educational degree and has deep knowledge about the
development of software.He knows all the workflow steps of buildingeffective software.His approach is
based on the logics, algorithms and calculations. A programmer writes intelligent codes that are used by
software engineer in one of the steps of building profound software. A programmer can work alone, it is
a personal activity but software engineering requires a team effort. It has different workflow steps that
require input from other team members performing different tasks. The output of one step serves as
the input for the next step. These engineers obtain feedback from their customers, system and team
members in or der to perform further improvement to meet the customer’s need.
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