Welcome to understanding how coding actually works! Coding is the process of writing instructions for computers to follow. Programming languages like Python, Java, and C++ allow humans to communicate with computers using readable text that gets transformed into actions.
The first step in coding is writing source code. Programmers use text editors or Integrated Development Environments, called IDEs, to write instructions in programming languages. Here we see example Python code being written, including print statements, variable assignments, and conditional logic.
The second step is translation. Source code written by humans must be converted into machine code that the computer's processor can understand. This translation happens through either compilation or interpretation. Compilers translate the entire program before execution, while interpreters translate and execute code line by line.
The third step is CPU execution. The Central Processing Unit reads machine code instructions from memory and executes them one by one. The CPU follows a cycle: fetch an instruction from memory, decode what operation to perform, execute that operation, and store the results. This happens millions of times per second.
To summarize how coding actually works: Programming transforms human-readable instructions into computer actions through a systematic process. Source code written in programming languages gets translated into machine code by compilers or interpreters. The CPU then executes these instructions through continuous fetch-decode-execute cycles, making your code come to life as real computer operations.