What is Psuedocode?

Pseudo-code is  a "language" where you can write all of your coding logic without writing one line of language-specific code. Pseudocode consists of short, English phrases used to explain specific tasks within a program. Ideally, pseudocode should not include keywords in any specific computer language. Pseudocode should be written as a list of consecutive phrases

Why use Pseudocode?

A prototype is an early sample, model or release of a product created with the intention of concept testing and for learning purposes. They help us to learn without fully implementing our solutions. When developing user interfaces for our applications, we have several prototypes before the final interface. Some examples of these are wire-frames, graphical designs and mock-ups. The same applies to writing technical code. Directly writing code for complex purposes might result in time wastage. The causes of this range from improper algorithms to ambiguous program flow. To prevent this, we can use Pseudocode.

Writing pseudocode saves time later during the coding and testing stage of a program’s development and also helps communication among designers, coders and project managers. Some projects may use pseudocode for design, others may use flowcharts, and some a combination of both.

Are there alternatives to Pseudocode?

There are some alternatives to Pseudocode. Some of them are Flowcharts, drakon-charts and Unified Modified Language (UML) charts. They will serve the purpose but they comparatively require more resources.

Keyword Used in Psuedocode

In Pseudocode, they are used to indicate common input-output and processing operations. They are written fully in uppercase.

START: This is the start of your pseudocode.

INPUT: This is data retrieved from the user through typing or through an input device.

READ / GET: This is input used when reading data from a data file.

PRINT, DISPLAY, SHOW: This will show your output to a screen or the relevant output device.

COMPUTE, CALCULATE, DETERMINE: This is used to calculate the result of an expression.

SET, INIT: To initialize values

INCREMENT, BUMP: To increase the value of a variable

DECREMENT: To reduce the value of a variable

Mathematical operations

Assignment: ← or :=

Comparison: =, ≠, <, >, ≤, ≥

Arithmetic: +, −, ×, /, mod

Logical: and, or

Sums, products: Σ Π