Visual Development Environment jBlocks

Visual programming

As the word „visual“ already suggests, it is a programming technique which works with graphical, visible objects. The programmes can be traditionally created by expressing the programming language phrases in words, calling objects by names and working with them using text commands and relations. In visual programming we work with graphical representations of objects instead of using the words. In practice it means that objects, which we could just imagine and describe them by words in a programming language before, are now physically visible on the desktop in the form of flow charts made of graphic interconnected blocks.

Traditional programming requires the logical and analytical thinking, verbal communication skills and much more. Visual programming now utilizes the non-verbal skills as well. There exist lots of reasons why to use visual programming instead of the traditional one, but the main one is that for students is the visual method much more attractive than working with a plain text.

Visual programming advantages:

  1. Using the blocks is much faster than programming in words, because one block can represent more information at once.
  2. Students can remember a visually represented information easily.
  3. A screen which is full of images makes the students percept a work with a computer more attractive and interesting.
  4. One of visual programming options - Ladder diagrams - are used in industry for PLC programming.
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