Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!decwrl!pa.dec.com!bacchus!mwm From: mwm@pa.dec.com (Mike (My Watch Has Windows) Meyer) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.programmer Subject: Script vs. program (Was: 20 byte "Hello World" program.) Message-ID: Date: 27 Feb 91 19:18:11 GMT References: <45932@nigel.ee.udel.edu> Sender: news@pa.dec.com (News) Organization: Missionaria Phonibalonica Lines: 26 In-Reply-To: Michael_Kelly@61ssc1.ceo.dg.com's message of 27 Feb 91 11:18:35 GMT In article <45932@nigel.ee.udel.edu> Michael_Kelly@61ssc1.ceo.dg.com writes: Would somebody like to define the difference between a 'program' and a 'script'? A program is something you write to achieve an end, and goes out and does "the right thing" appropriately invoked. A script is a a program that is interpreted by an interactive command processor in lieu of being entered directly. An executable is the form of a program that is actually used when it's run. It seems to me that setting the Shell prompt to "Hello World" does not satisfy the requirement for a 20 byte program to display that string, neither does 'echo "hello world"' etc. I half agree. The 20-byte script is a program. A script that sets the shell prompt to "Hello world" is a program with a different end. Setting the prompt isn't a program - no executable, and it prints the string everytime a program is through being invoked, not on demand.