While

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While is a keyword in many programming languages that is used to create a control flow structure known as a loop. The while loop is a fundamental concept in computer programming, and is used to repeatedly execute a block of code as long as a certain condition is true.

Syntax[edit | edit source]

The syntax of the while loop varies between different programming languages, but the general structure is the same. A condition is specified in parentheses after the while keyword, and the code to be executed is enclosed in braces. For example, in the C programming language, the syntax would look like this:

``` while (condition) {

   // code to be executed

} ```

Usage[edit | edit source]

The while loop is used when a programmer wants to repeat a block of code an unknown number of times until a certain condition is met. This could be, for example, when reading data from a file until the end of the file is reached, or when asking for user input until valid input is received.

Comparison with other loops[edit | edit source]

While loops are similar to for loops and do while loops. The main difference is that the condition in a while loop is checked before the loop is executed, whereas in a do while loop, the condition is checked after the loop is executed. This means that a do while loop will always execute at least once, whereas a while loop may not execute at all if the condition is not met initially.

See also[edit | edit source]


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Contributors: Prab R. Tumpati, MD