Programming and Problem Solving with Java

1.7 Problem-Solving Techniques | 23

INPUT

OUTPUT

Program entry

Data entry

Reports, lists

COMPUTER

System software: operating system,

compiler, editor

Figure 1.12 User/Computer Interface

all the time, most of our experience with them comes in the context of followingthem. We
follow a recipe, play a game, assemble a toy, or take medicine. In the problem-solving phase
of computer programming, however, we actually designalgorithms. This means we must be
conscious of the strategies we use to solve problems so that we can apply them to pro-
gramming problems effectively.

Ask Questions

If you are given a task orally, you ask questions—When? Why? Where?—until you under-
stand exactly what you have to do. If your instructions are written, you might put question
marks in the margin, underline a word or a sentence, or indicate in some other way that the
task is not clear. Your questions may be answered by a later paragraph, or you might have