What is a Paradigm:

Paradigm:



The archetype, paradigm, exemplar, and idea, according to which all things were made. (From Oxford English Dictionary)[1]


A paradigm is an archetype for modeling and solving problems. Inherent in a paradigm are basic assumptions about the nature of problems, and consequently about how they are to be approached. In effect, then, paradigms are the way that we think about problems, and are fundamental to the study of programming languages.[2]

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What is the difference & relationship between a Paradigm and a programming language?

Difference:


A programming language is the medium in which we utilize the paradigms that we have developed in order to solve problems.





Relationship:


A paradigm is an idea of solving a problem. The programming language how we utilize the paradigm. There is also the question about whether it is possible to use any given paradigm in any given language. We feel that it is not possible to do this, unless the programmer wrote code that extends the abilities of the language. Through this extension of abilities, though, they are essentially changing the attributes of the language to fit their own needs. For example, it would be possible for a person to extend the capabilites of FORTRAN to use the object-oriented paradigm, but now it's not FORTRAN.


Development:


It is hard to say whether a particular language came out first or vice versa. I believe that a particular language came out earlier than a paradigm. However, from the beginning of designing the language, some ideas about the paradigm must be there.

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What is the difference between a paradigm and software architecture?

A software architecture "serves as a framework for understanding system components and their interrelationships, especially those attributes that are consistent across time and implementations," [3]. Generally speaking, software architecture is: components + idioms/styles+common patterns of interaction between functional components. It emphasizes the components and the interaction between them. So, I personally think, the difference between a paradigm and a style of software architecture is that: a paradigm is a programming pattern, while a style of software architecture is a kind of models to realize a kind of applications. I mean, compared with a paradigm, a style of software architecture is a concrete pattern to some degree. It could be realized by several different paradigms.

Discussion