Programming Design Tools

Discussed By: Dr. Rosemarie S. GuirreProperty of DICT: Programming Design Tools

At the programming level, the following
tools help in designing programs:
•HIPO Chart
•Pseudocode
•Flowchart
Program Development Tools
Discussed By: Dr. Rosemarie S. GuirreProperty of DICT: Chapter 2- Programming Design Tools

HIPO Chart - Hierarchical Input-Process-Output
• A tool used for Problem Definition and Problem Analysis
• Helps clarify ambiguous portions of the specifications

Pseudocode
•Describes the logical flow of the solution to the problem
through English-like code that closely resembles the actual
programming language to be used.
•There are no rigid syntax rules in pseudocode. More
emphasis is placed in the logic of the solution rather than
the syntax of the language.

Flowchart
•Is used to graphically present the solution to a problem. It
uses flowcharting symbols linked together in a “flow” that
will arrive at the solution.
•Among the tools, it is the easiest to understand because of
it is visual appeal. However, the chart can get very cluttered
and disorganized when working on complex problems.

Program Development Tools - HIPO
The HIPO Chart will be used throughout the course as the
tool for problem definition and analysis.
To derive a HIPO Chart, questions such as these may be
asked:
•What are the outputs required?
•What are the inputs needed to produce the outputs?
•What are the processes needed to transform the inputs to
the desired outputs?

Simple Adding Problem
Given 2 numbers, print the sum of the 2 numbers
Using HIPO,
1. Define the outputs needed
INPUT
Sum of First
Number and
Second
Number
PROCESS OUTPUT

2. What inputs are provided? What other inputs are
needed to produce the output?
INPUT
Sum of First
Number and
Second Number
PROCESS OUTPUT
First Number
and Second
Number

3. What processes are needed to transform the
inputs to the desired outputs?
INPUT
Sum of First
Number and
Second Number
PROCESS OUTPUT
First Number
and Second
Number
1.Get First Number
2.Add Second
Number to First
Number
3.Print out the sum
of the two numbers

Guidelines in developing the HIPO
•Outputs should be determined first before inputs or
processes. This establishes the objective and scope of the
solution. Limit the outputs to those that are required in the
specifications.
•Outputs are easy to identify because they usually follow
verbs like “display”, “print” or “generate”.

Inputs are also given in the specifications. In simple
problems, the inputs clearly lead to the outputs. In
complex problems, this may not be visible outright, but
on further refinement of the solution.

•Processes contain the actions taken to transform the
inputs to outputs. This can be stated in English and do not
have to conform to any programming language.
•Actions on processes are executed sequentially, e.g.,
from top to bottom. Numbering the steps signify the
order of execution.

Group Workshop – Exercise 2.1
Problem:
•Given 3 whole numbers, print out the average of the 3
numbers.
•Create a HIPO chart that would show your solution to
the problem.

Problem Definition
•Is the problem clear?
•Are the outputs clearly defined?

Problem Analysis using HIPO
Level 0 – Main HIPO
INPUT
Average of the 3
numbers
PROCESS OUTPUT
First Number,
Second Number,
Third Number
1.Compute the sum
of the 3 numbers
2.Compute the
average based on
the sum
3.Print the average

Level 1 - HIPO
Process 1 – Compute the sum of the 3 numbers
Sum of the 3
numbers
First Number,
Second Number,
Third Number
1.1 Get the 1st
number 1.2 Get 2nd
number and add to
the 1st number 1.3
Get 3rd number
and add to the sum
in P1.2
Process 1 INPUT PROCESS 1 Process 1 OUTPUT

Level 1 HIPO
Process 2 – Compute the average based
on the sum
Average of the 3
numbers
Sum of the 3
numbers 2.1 Divide the
sum by 3

Level 1 HIPO
Process 3 – Print the average
Printed Average
of the 3 numbers
Average of the 3
numbers 3.1 Print the
average

The HIPO in
summary
1st number,
2nd number,
3rd number
INPUT
Main
Process 1-
compute the sum
Process 2 – compute
the average
Process 3 – Print
the Average
Printed Average
of the 3 Numbers
PROCESS
OUTPUT

Problem:
•A list contains names of students. Count how many
times the name “Ana” appears in the list.
•Create a HIPO chart that would show your solution to
the problem

Problem:
•A box contains balls with different colors. Count the
number of balls per color and display the total of all
colors.
•Create a HIPO chart that would show the solution to
the problem

Programming Design Tools

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