Abstract
Computer programming is the heart of computer science and C++ and Java are the most popular and widely used languages. The performance of C++ and Java programming languages has been benchmarked using robotics, numerical, genetic and evolutionary algorithms, but not using introductory programming algorithms. This article examined C++ and Java by analysing the implementation of novice algorithms of introductory programming courses by evaluating the difficulty, effort, time and delivered bugs of programs with Halstead software metrics. The study identified that Java is more difficult than C++ in the implementation of selected algorithms. Similarly, the efforts required to translate the novice algorithms in Java are higher than C++. The time involved in translating selected algorithms in C++ is lower than Java. Similarly, the number of delivered bugs in C++ is lower than Java. The study suggests that C++ is more suitable than Java for the implementation of introductory programming algorithms and reasonably more suitable for introductory programming courses. The study emboldens the programming linguists to do further analyses in contemplating other programming languages with Halstead software metrics and other kinds of algorithms.
Highlights
Technology pervades most areas of society [1]
The popular languages like C++ and Java are being compared in assorted dimensions; no notable study has compared these languages in implementing the fundamental algorithms being offered in introductory programming courses
This study presents a new tool for comparing and selecting felicitous language for introductory programming courses
Summary
Technology pervades most areas of society [1]. In the new global environment, the information technology is becoming widespread and seems inevitable. Information technology has successfully integrated in different areas including healthcare [2], education [3], defence [4], marketing [5], and sports [6]. The computer is an essential element of information technology and software is a main part of any digital computer. Software is developed through a formal system called programming languages. Programming is the heart of computer science [7] and a carrier awarding discipline [8]. The job opportunities of programmers are estimated to grow 8% from 2012 to 2022 [9]. According to Dice [10], the opportunities for software developers will increase by 2026. The rapid increase in job opportunities of programmers naturally amplifies the challenges in the design of programming languages.
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