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Programming questions (Read 20578 times)
Rad
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Re: Programming questions
Reply #15 - Aug 30th, 2009 at 3:18pm
 
Is there a simple way to describe the distinction between 'keywords' and predefined 'identifiers'?

They look like much the same thing to me. Maybe they are used for different purposes.
 
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MrMagoo
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Re: Programming questions
Reply #16 - Aug 30th, 2009 at 7:30pm
 
Keywords are words that mean something to the compiler/intrepreter.  They can be commands, notations, or several other things, but they are words that the compiler/interpreter has built-in knowledge of.

Identifiers are names that you give to objects.  In the statement

'answer = part1 + cos( angle1 )'

"answer" is an identifier.  It is a name you have given to something (in this case a variable.)  In the same statement, the cos() is a function that computes the cosine of an angle.  'cos' would be a keyword if the function is built into the compiler.  If it is instead the name of a function that you wrote yourself, then it would be an identifier for that function.

Keywords are often also called reserved words, because they are reserved for use by the compiler.
 
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Re: Programming questions
Reply #17 - Aug 31st, 2009 at 12:18am
 
nice, thanks.

i was having trouble with the identfier part.
 
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