Short Code (computer language)
- This article is about the early computer language Short Code. For the use of this term in connection with telecommunications, see Short Code.
In computing, the name Short code (singular noun) refers to the language of the same name which was the first actually implemented language[1] used for an electronic computing device. The technique used in programming the device involved using codes, usually called short codes (plural) which mapped to hardware functions. At the time, the language had to be 'hand coded' or simply put 'manually compiled' to machine code, rather than being able to parse it through a lexical analyser or compiler. The technique is named synonymously with pseudocodes, which can be confused with the highlevel language-independent algorithm 'language' representation. Short Code was the predecessor to Speedcoding, which extended Short Code by allowing for floating point calculations and code representation for the four calculation operators (* / + -?)