The History of COBOL: A Programming Language that Stands the Test of Time

Introduction

COBOL (Common Business Oriented Language) is a high-level programming language developed in the 1950s and 1960s by a team of programmers at Remington Rand, led by Dr. Grace Hopper. COBOL was designed to meet the growing need for business-oriented programming languages that could be used for data processing applications.

Characteristics

COBOL is a compiled language that supports structured programming and has been widely adopted in various industries such as banking, finance, healthcare, and government. Some of its key characteristics include:

• High-level abstraction: COBOL provides high-level abstractions that allow programmers to focus on the logic of their programs without worrying about low-level details.
• Business-oriented syntax: COBOL’s syntax is designed specifically for business applications, making it easy to write programs that process data and perform calculations.
• Portability: COBOL code can be compiled on a variety of platforms, including mainframes, minicomputers, and personal computers.

Features

COBOL has several features that make it an attractive choice for programmers:

Feature	Description
Data Definition	COBOL allows programmers to define data structures such as arrays, records, and files.
Control Structures	COBOL supports various control structures such as IF-THEN statements, DO loops, and conditional transfers.
Subprograms	COBOL enables the creation of subprograms that can be called from multiple points in a program.
File Handling	COBOL provides built-in support for file handling operations such as reading, writing, and updating files.

Applications

COBOL has been used in a wide range of applications, including:

• Accounting and finance: COBOL is widely used in accounting and financial institutions for tasks such as payroll processing, tax calculation, and financial reporting.
• Healthcare: COBOL is used in healthcare to process medical claims, manage patient records, and perform other administrative tasks.
• Government: COBOL is used by government agencies for tasks such as census data processing, social security benefits administration, and tax collection.

Modernization of COBOL

Although COBOL was developed decades ago, it remains a widely used programming language today. However, with the rise of newer languages such as Java and Python, there has been a push to modernize COBOL code by using tools and techniques such as:

• Code rehosting: This involves recompiling COBOL code on newer platforms without modifying its underlying logic.
• Reengineering: This involves rewriting COBOL code in a more modern language while preserving its original functionality.

Conclusion

COBOL is a programming language that has stood the test of time. Its business-oriented syntax, high-level abstraction, and portability make it an attractive choice for programmers working on data processing applications. While newer languages have gained popularity, COBOL remains widely used in various industries due to its ease of use, reliability, and maintainability.

Code Example

Here is a simple example of a COBOL program that reads a file and prints its contents:

IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
PROGRAM-ID. PRINTFILE.

DATA DIVISION.
FILE SECTION.

FILE-CONTROL.
SELECT IN-FILE ASSIGN TO 'INPUT.FILE'.
SELECT OUT-FILE ASSIGN TO 'OUTPUT.FILE'.

DATA DIVISION.
WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.

01  FILE-VARIABLES.
05  LINE-LENGTH   PIC S9(4) COMP.
05  CURRENT-LINE  PIC X(80).

PROCEDURE DIVISION.
MAIN-PROGRAM.
OPEN INPUT IN-FILE
OUTPUT OUT-FILE.

READ IN-FILE AT END PERFORM EXIT-PROGRAM
NOT AT END PERFORM PROCESS-FILE

EXIT-PROGRAM.
CLOSE OUT-FILE.

PROCESS-FILE.
READ IN-FILE INTO CURRENT-LINE
AT END PERFORM NEXT-LINE
NOT AT END PERFORM PRINT-LINE

NEXT-LINE.
ADD 1 TO CURRENT-LINE

PRINT-LINE.
WRITE OUT-FILE FROM CURRENT-LINE.