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+--- Thread: the term arguments (/thread-38714.html)
RE: the term arguments - astral_travel - Nov-26-2022
ok, reasonable
RE: the term arguments - dmc8300 - Nov-26-2022
In the early days of programming parameters and arguments had to do with function(a,b..) and subroutines. A function returned a single value to the calling program based on its parameters (a,b..). Whereas a subroutine(a,b,c..) contained arguments (a,d,c..) which were links to the values within the calling program. I think the choice of the word arguments for subroutine indicated that the calling program’s arguments/variables could be changed within the subroutine. Whereas a parameter(s) were passed to the function.
RE: the term arguments - astral_travel - Nov-26-2022
(Nov-26-2022, 05:07 PM)dmc8300 Wrote: In the early days of programming parameters and arguments had to do with function(a,b..) and subroutines. A function returned a single value to the calling program based on its parameters (a,b..). Whereas a subroutine(a,b,c..) contained arguments (a,d,c..) which were links to the values within the calling program. I think the choice of the word arguments for subroutine indicated that the calling program’s arguments/variables could be changed within the subroutine. Whereas a parameter(s) were passed to the function.
is this how it is in C or Assembly ?
RE: the term arguments - dmc8300 - Nov-26-2022
This terminology was for early compiled languages (MAD,FORTRAN,PASCAL,etc). Forth generations and beyond use functions and other methods to create encapsulated blocks of code.
RE: the term arguments - astral_travel - Nov-26-2022
i see,
i actually learned some PASCAL in high school, just a bit...
and i have an uncle who was programming in FORTRAN back at the times...
RE: the term arguments - Larz60+ - Nov-26-2022
I started programming in 1968. I was working in the R & D department of a computer manufacturer, in the disk drive development department. We had to write assembly diagnostics programs in order to do our work. I fell in love with programming switched and never looked back.
In assembly programming, our 'arguments' were all held in registers, or internal (core, no affordable silicon back then) memory, but they were indeed arguments. I don't, however, remember calling them arguments back then.
A function could return a single item, but that item could be an 'address' to a structure containing many elements. So in a way, we did indeed have multiple arguments.