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Second-generation programming language

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The label of second-generation programming language (2GL) is a generational way to categorize <a href="Assembly_language" title="Assembly language">assembly languages</a>.<a href="#cite_note-Computer_Hope-1">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-:0-3">[3]</a> They belong to the <a href="Low-level_programming_language" title="Low-level programming language">low-level programming languages</a>.

The term was coined to provide a distinction from higher level <a href="Machine_independent" class="mw-redirect" title="Machine independent">machine independent</a> <a href="Third-generation_programming_language" title="Third-generation programming language">third-generation programming languages</a> (3GLs) (such as <a href="COBOL" title="COBOL">COBOL</a>, <a href="C_(programming_language)" title="C (programming language)">C</a>, or <a href="Java_(programming_language)" title="Java (programming language)">Java</a>) and earlier <a href="First-generation_programming_language" title="First-generation programming language">first-generation programming languages</a> (<a href="Machine_code" title="Machine code">machine code</a>)<a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-:1-4">[4]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Second-generation_programming_language">Second-generation programming language</h2></div>

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</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Further information: <a href="Assembly_language" title="Assembly language">Assembly language</a></div>

Second-generation programming languages have the following properties:

<ul><li>Lines within a program correspond directly to processor commands, essentially acting as a mnemonic device overlaying a first generation programming language.</li>

<li>The code can be read and written by a programmer. To run on a computer it must be converted into a machine readable form, a process called <a href="Assembly_language" title="Assembly language">assembly</a>.<a href="#cite_note-:1-4">[4]</a></li>

<li>The language is specific to a particular processor family and environment.<a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a></li></ul>

Second-generation languages are sometimes used for parts of <a href="Kernel_(operating_system)" title="Kernel (operating system)">kernels</a> or <a href="Device_drivers" class="mw-redirect" title="Device drivers">device drivers</a>, and are sometimes used in video games, graphics programs, and other intensive programs.<a href="#cite_note-Computer_Hope-1">[1]</a>

In modern programs, second generation assembly languages are rarely used.<a href="#cite_note-5">[5]</a> Programming in second generation languages may yield speed benefits, but several disadvantages have led to its decline:

<ul><li>Programming is expressed in terms of individual processor instructions, rather than higher level logic.<a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-:0-3">[3]</a></li>

<li>Low-level memory and hardware details must be manually managed which is often bug-prone.<a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a></li>

<li>Programs are <a href="Machine-dependent" class="mw-redirect" title="Machine-dependent">machine-dependent</a>, so different versions must be written for every target machine architecture.<a href="#cite_note-:0-3">[3]</a></li></ul>

The vast majority of programs are written in a <a href="Third-generation_programming_language" title="Third-generation programming language">third-generation programming language</a> or a <a href="Fourth-generation_programming_language" title="Fourth-generation programming language">fourth-generation programming language</a>. Assembly's main advantage, speed, has degraded by the fact that well written <a href="C_(programming_language)" title="C (programming language)">C</a> code can often be as fast or even faster than handwritten assembly.<a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-6">[6]</a>

Second generation languages are perhaps most significant in their place in computing history. For a long time, Second generation assembly languages were the only good option for development for many machines, such as the <a href="Nintendo_Entertainment_System" title="Nintendo Entertainment System">NES</a> or the <a href="Commodore_64" title="Commodore 64">Commodore 64</a>.<a href="#cite_note-7">[7]</a><a href="#cite_note-8">[8]</a> Second generation languages represented a massive step away from the tradition of programmers conforming to the needs of a machine, and the first step towards the machine accommodating for the programmer, a phenomenon that would be repeated in all subsequent programming language generations.<a href="#cite_note-Brookshear-2">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-:0-3">[3]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2></div>

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<li id="cite_note-Computer_Hope-1">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Computer_Hope_1-0">a</a> <a href="#cite_ref-Computer_Hope_1-1">b</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.computerhope.com/jargon/num/1gl.htm">"Computer Hope, Generation languages"</a>

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</style><cite id="CITEREFBrookshear2012" class="citation book cs1">Brookshear, J. Glenn (2012). Computer science : an overview (11th ed.). Addison-Wesley. pp. 240–241. <a href="ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <bdi>978-0-13-256903-3</bdi>.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-:0-3">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-0">a</a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-1">b</a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-2">c</a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-3">d</a> <cite id="CITEREFVass" class="citation web cs1">Vass, Péter. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.uni-miskolc.hu/~geofiz/Oktatok/vass/Generations_and_paradigms.pdf">"Programming Language generations and Programming Paradigms"</a> (PDF).</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-:1-4">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:1_4-0">a</a> <a href="#cite_ref-:1_4-1">b</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-programming-language-generations.htm">"What Are Programming Language Generations?"</a>. wiseGEEK. Retrieved 2019-06-11.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-5"><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20190612064009/http://statisticstimes.com/tech/top-computer-languages.php">"Top Computer Languages 2019 - StatisticsTimes.com"</a>. statisticstimes.com. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://statisticstimes.com/tech/top-computer-languages.php">the original</a> on 2019-06-12. Retrieved 2019-06-11.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-6"><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFWalls" class="citation web cs1">Walls, Colin. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200129065925/https://blogs.mentor.com/colinwalls/blog/2013/02/18/why-c-is-faster-than-assembly/">"Why C is faster than assembly"</a>. Mentor, a Sieman's Business. Mentor Inc. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://blogs.mentor.com/colinwalls/blog/2013/02/18/why-c-is-faster-than-assembly/">the original</a> on 2020-01-29. Retrieved 11 June 2019.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-7"><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFCommodore_corporation" class="citation web cs1">Commodore corporation. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.commodore.ca/manuals/c64_programmers_reference/c64-programmers_reference_guide-05-basic_to_machine_language.pdf">"C64 programmer's reference"</a> (PDF). Commodore corporation. Retrieved 11 June 2019.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-8"><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFWikibooks_contributors" class="citation web cs1">Wikibooks contributors. <a class="external text external" href="https://en.wikibooks.org/w/index.php?title=NES_Programming&oldid=3551383">"NES assembly"</a>. Wikibooks: NES Assembly. Retrieved 11 June 2019.</cite> <code class="cs1-code">{{cite web}}</code>: <code class="cs1-code">|author1=</code> has generic name (help)

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</style><div id="Types_of_programming_languages107" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="Programming_paradigm" title="Programming paradigm">Types of programming languages</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Level</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em">

<ul><li><a href="Machine_code" title="Machine code">Machine</a></li>

<li><a href="Assembly_language" title="Assembly language">Assembly</a></li>

<li><a href="Compiled_language" title="Compiled language">Compiled</a></li>

<li><a href="Interpreted_language" class="mw-redirect" title="Interpreted language">Interpreted</a></li></ul>

<ul><li><a href="Low-level_programming_language" title="Low-level programming language">Low-level</a></li>

<li><a href="High-level_programming_language" title="High-level programming language">High-level</a></li>

<li><a href="Very_high-level_programming_language" title="Very high-level programming language">Very high-level</a></li>

<li><a href="Esoteric_programming_language" title="Esoteric programming language">Esoteric</a></li></ul>

</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="Programming_language_generations" title="Programming language generations">Generation</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em">

<ul><li><a href="First-generation_programming_language" title="First-generation programming language">First</a></li>

<li><a href="Third-generation_programming_language" title="Third-generation programming language">Third</a></li>

<li><a href="Fourth-generation_programming_language" title="Fourth-generation programming language">Fourth</a></li>

<li><a href="Fifth-generation_programming_language" title="Fifth-generation programming language">Fifth</a></li></ul>

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