LINC is a powerful and yet easy to learn programming language. It is the brainchild of Dr. Richard E. Pattis, who also created the well-known Karel the Robot language. LINC is based on Pascal, but with many enhancements and additions.
LINC was designed with three main goals in mind: to be easy to learn, to be easy to use, and to be powerful. And it certainly succeeds on all three counts. LINC is probably the easiest language to learn after Logo. It is also very easy to use, thanks to its English-like syntax and its many built-in features. Yet despite its simplicity, LINC is a very powerful language. It has all the features you would expect in a modern language, including:
• Structured programming
• High-level data types
• Complex control structures
• Subroutines and functions
• Input/output
• Graphics
• Exception handling
One of the most distinctive features of LINC is its use of "labels". A label is simply a name that you can give to any statement or group of statements. This makes it very easy to create "blocks" of code that can be executed as a unit. For example, you could label a group of statements as "Loop" and then use the "Loop" label to execute those statements over and over again.
LINC also has a very rich set of data types. In addition to the usual scalar types (integers, floating-point numbers, characters, and strings), LINC also supports arrays, records, sets, files, and even pointers. LINC's data types are so rich and flexible that you can use them to create just about any data structure you can imagine.
LINC also has excellent support for graphics and input/output. It includes a powerful graphics library that makes it easy to create sophisticated graphics programs. And its I/O library makes it just as easy to create programs that read and write files, communicate with devices, and so on.
All in all, LINC is an excellent choice for just about any programming task. It is especially well-suited for educational applications, but it is powerful enough for professional use as well. If you are looking for an easy to learn, easy to use, and powerful programming language, LINC is definitely worth considering.