All About Hello World

Introduction

The phrase “Hello, World!” is often used in computing.

Developers use it as the first program they write when learning a new programming language or testing a development environment. If you were wondering why, there are several reasons behind this tradition:

1. Simplicity:
   A "Hello, World!" program is the simplest that can be written in any computer language. It demonstrates everything is set up correctly and the developer can compile, run, and see output from a program.

1. Instant gratification:

Seeing a working program, even a simple one, provides a sense of accomplishment and encourages developers to continue learning the language or exploring the development environment.

1. Consistency:
   Using the same program across different languages makes it easier for developers to compare the syntax and structure of each language.

1. Tradition:
   "Hello, World!" was popularised by the book The C Programming Language by Brian Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie in 1978.

Nobody really knows who first ordered a computer to say “Hello, World!” but it began its ascent to nerd fame back in 1972, when the computer scientist Brian Kernighan was writing documentation for the BCPL programming language developed by Martin Richards. BCPL was used while C was being developed at Bell Labs a few years before the publication of Kernighan and Ritchie's C book.

Outside computing, use of the exact phrase began over a decade prior. It was the catchphrase of New York radio disc jockey William B. Williams beginning in the 1950s.