What’s The Difference Between Scripting And Coding?

There are millions of coders in the world & they use various languages. Programming languages have evolved since the invention of computers. Hey, but what if I tell you most of them are not programming languages, but scripting languages? Oops! Does that make you a scripter and not a coder anymore?

Your confusion ends right here! The following article will give you a clear concept of the difference between coding and scripting and answer all the frequently asked questions that have been hovering in your mind too! So, let us get started!

What is Coding?

Firstly, let us talk about the most common term of 21st-century — coding. Coding is nothing but a skill that allows us to work with computers and build software. The basic idea of coding lies in the fact that we have a specific set of instructions to pass on to the machine and generate output depending on the requirements.

At the first step of any coding project, you need to ask the following:

What is the problem?
What are the approaches?
How many algorithms can I use?
What will be the most optimal one?

Just think about all the mobile apps you use daily: Facebook, Google, Twitter, Linkedin, Netflix, Spotify, and so on. All these apps get created to connect like-minded people across the globe, get them in touch with each other, and allow them to share their views on a single platform.

These apps are written in the form of code with instructions in a variety of coding languages and compiled together to create the entire interface that the world uses every day a million times. All you need here is a code editor, your preferred programming language, and some programming skills!

And how do these programming languages work?

The instructions written in these languages are based on algorithms that are developed by coders, compiled to machine code, and made executable on the hardware of the Operating System (OS) involved. We often use the term IDE (Integrated Development Environment) to refer to a platform or software that allows us to code in a particular language. So, programming languages enable us to transform the set of input data into runnable and executable applications.

Java, Scala, C, C++, etc. are known as compiled general-purpose languages. By this, we imply that the source code of the program needs to be written by the coder and then run utilizing a compiler that would convert them to binary instructions, a form which the computer would be able to decrypt.

What is Scripting?

Scripting is a much diverse version of coding. Let us explain.

For example, you are working on building a gaming website and all you need is to simply display images and text. This will be a static website with no animation or graphics or other changeable elements. This is performed with the help of coding and is used to make static content only.

On the contrary, the same website may need graphics and animations on the screen, which make it dynamic. This is what we call scripting.

Sounds good?

Let us check out another example! The weather in your locality is pretty unpredictable. Thus, you decide to build a weather forecast app that notifies you regarding the weather details for the day.

You can achieve this by utilizing a suitable weather API and your scripting skills. It will allow your code to interact with other APIs and collect the relevant information. Once collected, your app is automated and can send you notifications directly.

Scripting languages are interpreter-based. It can be used for automation and implemented on basic software to be tested.

Scripting languages are now in vogue as their utility is increasing at a fast pace, especially in the development sectors. These languages can manipulate, bring about customizations and add automation features to the traits of any system.

Javascript, Perl, VBScript are some of the popularly known scripting languages.

Difference Between Coding and Scripting

Now you need to ask yourself the following questions to understand the difference between coding and scripting.

Have I understood the concept of coding?
Did I get the idea of scripting right?

We have compiled several differences that you will be able to point out between coding and scripting. Let us check them out here.

Compiled vs Interpreted

Programming languages get compiled, whereas Scripting languages get interpreted.
In a compiled language, the machine reads the entire program and lists all the errors at once, at the end of the code.
In an interpreted language, the source code is read one line at a time & errors get generated after each line is executed.

Static vs Dynamic

Coding lets us build a program with static functionalities.
Scripting allows us to control the program from a dynamic aspect.

Learning Time

Coding can take a significant amount of time to learn whereas scripting is relatively easy.

Workflow

Programming is based on a code-intensive workflow.
Scripting is more statement-oriented and has less code compared to programming languages.

Binary vs Memory

Coding essentially involves creating binary versions executable from the system whereas, scripting creates no binary files and involves no memory allocation.

Program Support

Coding languages can run independently but scripting languages run on another program or API.

Takeaway

C, Java, C++, C# are some examples of programming languages, whereas JavaScript, Python, Ruby are examples of Scripting languages. However, in recent days, due to advanced hardware and technological development and improved versions of programming and scripting languages, the difference between the two is hardly taken into account. Improved dependencies and IDEs have allowed a language to function both for programming and scripting.