Iteration Control Structures
Overview
In iteration control structures, a statement or block is executed until the program reaches a certain state, or operations have been applied to every element of a collection. This is usually expressed with keywords such as while, repeat, for, or do..until.[1]
Discussion
The basic attribute of an iteration control structure is to be able to repeat some lines of code. The visual display of iteration creates a circular loop pattern when flowcharted, thus the word “loop” is associated with iteration control structures. Iteration can be accomplished with test before loops, test after loops, and counting loops. A question using Boolean concepts usually controls how often the loop will execute.
Iteration (Repetition) Control Structures
pseudocode: While
count assigned zero
While count < 5
Display "I love computers!"
Increment count
End
pseudocode: Do While
count assigned five
Do
Display "Blast off is soon!"
Decrement count
While count > zero
pseudocode: Repeat Until
count assigned five
Repeat
Display "Blast off is soon!"
Decrement count
Until count < one
pseudocode: For
For x starts at 0, x < 5, increment x
Display "Are we having fun?"
End