Structured Programming
Emerging in the late 1950s with the appearance of the ALGOL 60 and the ALGOL 58 programming languages, structured programming latter included some support for block structures in particular. Structured programming is known to be most often used nowadays. The deviations may be allowed in order to get the clearer programs in some definite cases, e.g. when the exception handling has to be done.
It is always possible to do the needed structured programming in any of the existing programming languages. At the same time, it is always better to use something similar to a procedural programming language. Some of the languages originally used for structured programming may be Pascal, ALGOL, Ada and PL/I, but mostly used and modern procedural programming languages have newly included features for encouraging the structured programming. Structured programming may be also sometimes known as a modular programming. It enforces a logical structure on the program that may be written in order to make it more efficient as well as easier to both modify if needed and to understand.
Jackson structured programming (JSP) is known to be one of the most popular methods that are widely used for performing the structured programming. It is based on the correspondences the between data stream and program structures. The Jackson structured programming structures programs and data depending on the sequences, selections and iterations. It may be applied when designing some program's control structure in details. This particular method applies to processing any needed data stream or data structure that may be described as a hierarchical structure of optional, iterated and sequential elements.
The mentioned elements can be messages that some process may read in order to invoke and so to coordinate some other objects or modules. It may be also a string of characters in parameters that passed to a single operation in an object-oriented programming language on an "object" coded. Thus, it can be either above or below that level where the needed object-oriented methods are applied.
The semi-formal steps may be used by JSP in order to capture the existing structure of a program's outputs and inputs in the structure of the program itself. The main intent may be to create the programs which may be easy to modify all over their lifetime. Michael A. Jackson's major insight while developing the JSP was that most of the requirement changes are minor tweaks to the existing structures. For any program that is constructed by using JSP, the inputs, the outputs as well as the internal structures of some particular program all match. In this situation, all the small changes to the outputs and inputs should translate into also small changes to the program.
Example 1. Structured Programming — Print Bank Statement
Jackson structured programming structures programs may be of four component types, which are fundamental operations, iterations, sequences and selections. This method itself begins by describing some particular program's inputs, taking into account the previously mentioned fundamental component types. Later, the program's outputs may be described in the same way. Each of the inputs and outputs may be modelled as a separate Data Structure Diagram.
Making the needed diagrams with the help of the ConceptDraw DIAGRAM diagramming and drawing software seems to be the best choice for the application to deal with. Having the solutions available from the ConceptDraw STORE as the extensions of the previously mentioned ConceptDraw DIAGRAM tool may help simplify the work of creating the needed illustrations.
The best solution for creating the needed Jackson Structured Programming (JSP) Diagrams is the Jackson Structured Programming (JSP) Diagrams solution. This solution stands for simplifying ConceptDraw DIAGRAM users work of drawing the JSP diagrams within a short period of time being based on the available pre-made examples. Having the previously created templates makes it simpler to draw the unique illustrations.
Example 2. Jackson Structured Programming (JSP) Diagram Elements
Such samples as the “Jackson Diagram”, “JSP Diagram Payment”, “JSP Diagram Print Bank Statement”, “JSP Diagram — RLE Correspondence”, “JSP Diagram — RLE Input”, “JSP Diagram — RLE Output”, “JSP Diagram — RLE Program”, “JSP Diagram — Selection”, “JSP Iteration” and “JSP Sequence” may become available for all those ConceptDraw DIAGRAM users who decide to download the ConceptDraw STORE application and to install the Jackson Structured Programming (JSP) Diagrams solution.
In order to prevent the mistakes in creating the needed design symbols for JSP related drawings, the pre-made stencils are available for all the ConceptDraw DIAGRAM users who install the Jackson Structured Programming (JSP) Diagrams solution. Such representations as the one of an Action/Process, Process, Selection, Tree connector, Iteration, Logical connector and different Procedures, as well as Vertical arrow down, Vertical double arrow, Direct connector and Arrowed direct connector are all available to be used from the stencil library from this solution.
