UMBC CS 201, Fall 98
UMBC CMSC 201 & 201H Fall '98 CSEE | 201 | 201 F'98 | lectures | news | help

Problem decomposition

The write/compile/test method

Small programs are written using the "write/compile/test" model.

Divide and Conquer

A central part of programming, then, is taking a large and complex problem and decomposing it into smaller problems that can more easily be solved.

Useful Methods and techniques

Some portions are adapted from Oh! Pascal third edition and notes by Anthony Aaby, aabyan@wwc.edu.


Top Down Design and Programming

Top-Down Programming, or
Stepwise Refinement


Bottom Up Design and Implementation


Program Stubs


Incremental Program Development

As programs become more complex, changes have a tendency to introduce unexpected effects.