4th generation language (4GL)
The programming languages of the fourth generation (4GL) are problem-oriented programming languages, comprehensive development systems. With these programming languages object orientation, scalability, data base access and the component architecture are in the foreground. The 4GL programming languages are to support the programmer with the fast production of complete applications.
4GL programming languages such as Centura team Developer, Uniface, Oracle Developer or Powerbuilder are characterised by more comprehensive program instructions, whereby the programmer is relieved of system near operations. Thus, the user does not have to request memory space for his programs and data from the operating system and does not have to worry about freeing the memory space. Likewise the handling with Pointern on memory areas is void.
Further aspects of 4GL programming languages are the integration mechanisms with which services made available by the operating system can be called, a run time environment, which ensures an extensive hardware independence as well as the portability of the program on different relational data base systems.