Source Code and Object Code

Source Code

• Definition: The human-readable code written by a programmer in a programming language.
• Characteristics: Easy to read and understand, can be modified and maintained.
• Examples: C, Java, Python, C++ source files (.c, .java, .py, .cpp).

Object Code

• Definition: The machine-readable code generated by a compiler from source code.
• Characteristics: Not easily readable by humans, can be executed directly by the computer's processor.
• Examples: Object files (.o, .obj), binary files.

Relationship between Source Code and Object Code

• Compilation: Source code is compiled into object code by a compiler.
• Translation: The compiler translates the source code into machine-specific object code.
• Execution: The object code can be executed directly by the computer's processor.