Skip to content

Ask an Academic

  • Home
  • Ask a Question
  • Contact Us
Picture of a data centre

Structured and unstructured programming

September 23, 2019 by AskanAcademic.com

Unstructured programming predates structured approaches, and can be found in languages such as BASIC, FORTRAN and machine code. It involves...

Question

What are the differences between structured programming and unstructured programming?

Answer

Approaches to programming are often categorised as being either structured or unstructured.

Unstructured programming predates structured approaches, and can be found in languages such as BASIC, FORTRAN and machine code. It involves a single code block, and makes extensive use of GOTO in order to control the flow of the execution and add complexity to the program. As a result of this constant jumping around, unstructured code can become very difficult to follow and maintain – especially when it comes to larger projects. This also makes it much more difficult for multiple programmers to collaborate on the same code. Another noteworthy feature of unstructured programming is that there is only one (global) scope for variables; there is no concept of local variables.

In contrast, structured programming is modular in nature, making it considerably easier to follow and maintain. These approaches are common to the majority of modern programming languages. Rather than using GOTO to control the flow of execution, structured approaches make use of loops and the execution of smaller, nested blocks of code which can have their own locally-scoped variables. This improves readability and makes it easier to improve small parts of a program without having unintended effects in other areas. As a result, it is much easier for multiple programmers to collaborate by working separately on isolated parts of the code.

Comparing the two, it can be seen that structured approaches are superior for almost all purposes; they are easier to read and maintain, they are scalable (to very large projects), and can allow for the expression of rather complex solutions in a much simpler form.

References

Post navigation

Previous Post:

The BRICS countries and sub-imperialism

Next Post:

Concurrent Engineering vs. Traditional Development

Search Q&As

Categories

  • Art Media and Literature (73)
  • Business and Management (256)
  • Computing and ICT (14)
  • Construction and Engineering (35)
  • Education (90)
  • Environmental Sciences (2)
  • Finance and Economics (91)
  • Health (64)
  • Languages (12)
  • Law (88)
  • Mathematics and Statistics (2)
  • Medical Sciences (19)
  • Politics and International Relations (83)
  • Research Methodology (1)
  • Science (49)
  • Social Sciences (101)

Related Posts

  • What is Precarious Work?
  • What are the Differences Between Democrats and Republicans?
  • What are Smart Borders?
  • How widespread is mental illness in the construction industry?
  • What is the capital structure of Chinese listed companies in the IT industry?

Archives

Who We Are

Askanacademic.com is owned and operated by All Answers Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales. Company Registration No: 4964706. VAT Registration No: 842417633. Data Controller No: Z1821391.

Registered office:
Venture House
Cross Street
Arnold
Nottingham
NG5 7PJ

Main Navigation

  • Home
  • Ask a Question
  • Contact Us

Legals

  • Cookie Policy
  • Privacy Policy

Popular Categories

  • Business and Management
  • Law
  • Finance and Economics
  • Health
An an Academic Logo
© 2021 Ask an Academic | WordPress Theme by Superb Themes
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Reject
Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.