Program Flow

Program Flow

Introduction

• The program flow also known as control flow, is the order in which the instructions in a program are executed.
• A good understanding of program flow is critical to correctly implement logic in your code and achieve the desired outcome.

Sequential Execution

• At the most basic level, sequential execution implies running instructions consecutively, one after the other.
• In sequential execution, every line of code is executed in the order they appear in the source code.

Conditional Statements

• Conditional statements are used to perform different actions based on different conditions. It’s an essential part of making programs act in a dynamic rather than static way.
• The most typical conditional statements in Python include if, elif and else.

Looping Structures

• Looping structures are used to repeat certain parts of the code multiple times based on a condition.
• The most common types include for loops and while loops.
• A for loop is used for iterating over a sequence (like a list, tuple, dictionary, set or string) or other iterable objects.
• A while loop repeatedly executes a target statement as long as a given condition remains True.

Functions and Procedures

• Functions and procedures are subroutines that perform a specific task, they enhance code reusability and make programs more structured.
• A function can return a value, but a procedure cannot.
• In Python, def keyword is used to define a function.

Error Handling

• Error handling is the process of responding to errors that occur during the execution of a program.
• Error handling allows the program to continue its flow even when an error occurs.
• In Python, the try, except statements are used for error handling.

Conclusion

• The program flow includes sequential execution, conditional statements, looping structures, functions, procedures and error handling.
• Understanding the program flow and how to control it is fundamental to creating well-structured, efficient and error-free codes.