Scripting languages are essential in the modern computing field. They aid in completing tasks automatically, augment the functionalities of a computer software application, and dynamically create web pages. It is common knowledge that they are easily and conveniently operated.

This is why they are increasingly very popular, especially among developers, system administrators, and data scientists. However, considering the number of these scripting languages, it is challenging to understand their types and exact purposes.

Whether a developer is advanced or just starting, this guide gives you a broad overview of what there is to know about in the world of programming when it comes tarning more about scripting.

Scripting languages are a certain kind of programming language specifically elaborated for action implementation automation, that otherwise, one would have to undertake manually. That is quite the antithesis of compiled languages, which are converted into machine code before execution. These languages are most times interpreted at the time of execution. That is to mean they are easy and flexible to use, but it does not necessarily have the same performance optimization that could be seen in the case of using a compiled language.

Such languages are applied to a much wider array of objectives, including:

• Automating repetitive tasks
• Developing web applications
• To maintain system configuration management
• Data processing
• Develop User Interface

Such versatility coupled with facilitated integration with other systems make scripting languages an indispensable tool in many areas of software development as well as in system administration.

1. Shell programming languages:

Shell scripting languages are languages used for scripting CLIs of operating systems. They automate some tasks within an operating system environment, such as file manipulation, execution of programs, and system management.

Key Characteristics

• Command-Line Interface: Here, shell scripts are specifically concerned with the command-line interface of the operating system.
• Task Automation: Shell scripts are, by and large, applied to do several works related to system maintenance, backups, and batch processing automatically.
• Platform-Specific: Each operating system contains some shell scripting languages of its own, e.g. Bash for Unix/Linux and PowerShell for Windows.

Examples

• Bash: Shortly, Bash is the abbreviation of the Bourne Again Shell, which is one of the popular shell scripting languages under Unix/Linux systems. It is very powerful and extensively used in server administrations and scripting purposes.

 # Example of a Bash script to back up a directory
#!/bin/bash
tar -cvzf backup.tar.gz /directory/path

• PowerShell: Originally developed by Microsoft for task automation as well as configuration management, it works for Windows. Since PowerShell integrates so well with both the Windows operating system and .NET framework, it has access.

  # a sample of powershell script to list down files in a directory
  Get-ChildItem -Path "C:\directory\path"

2. Web Scripting Languages

Web scripting languages are thus used to develop dynamic and interactive web pages. They are executed either on the server side or on the client side, which enables the developer to enhance the feature and experience of a website.

Key Features

• Dynamic Content: Web scripting languages help the developer to create a website that may change with respect to user input or some another factor.
• Client-Side and Server-Side: They can be executed on the client-side of the connection (in the browser of the user) as well as on the server-side (on the web server).
• Integration: Web scripting languages almost always work in tandem with HTML, CSS, and other Web technologies.

Examples

• JavaScript: A client-side scripting language that primarily runs for making Web pages interactive. It operates in the web browser of the user and can manipulate HTML and CSS to produce dynamic content.

// A sample JavaScript code that is going to pop up an alert
  document.getElementById("myButton").onclick = function(){
    alert("Button clicked!");
  };
  ?>

• PHP: PHP represents for Hypertext Preprocessor. It is a server-side scripting language/devised for the creation of static and dynamic web pages, also for interrelating the databases. It operates on the web server, which creates the HTML to be sent to the client’s browser.

  <?php

html
// Sample PHP message output
echo “Hello, World!”;
?>

### 3. **Data Scripting Languages**

The main purpose of **data scripting languages** is to manipulate, analyze, and process data. They are best applied in the functions of data science, statistics, and database management to serve and analyze big data.

#### Key Features

- **Data Manipulation**: There is a good amount of functionalities and libraries in data scripting languages to draw meaningful insights from the different data.
- **Statistical Analysis**: They frequently have built-in functions for performing statistical operations and data visualization.
- **Database Interaction**: Data scripting languages interact with databases to retrieve and manipulate data on a regular basis.

#### Examples

- **Python**: Python is a widely-used general-purpose scripting language within [Data Science and Machine Learning]. It's extended through libraries such as NumPy, pandas, and Matplotlib to become a vital toolbox used for data analysis and visualization.

python

Mean of a python list

import numpy as np
numbers = [1,2,3,4,5]
mean = np.mean(numbers)
print(“Mean:”, mean)

- **R**: This is a statistical language and has an extensive set of packages to assist in almost any data analysis efforts.

r

Example of R code to create a simple plot

data <- c(1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
plot(data, type=”o”, col=”blue”)

### 4. **Configuration Scripting Languages**

**Configuration scripting languages** are used to manage and configure system settings and software. They are essential for system administration and infrastructure management, allowing for the automated setup and management of environments.

#### Key Characteristics

- **System Configuration**: The main use of these languages is defining and managing system configuration, such as installing software and setting the environment.
- **Automation**: They automate most of the setup and maintenance for a system, with minimum manual interruption, thus resulting in reduced errors.
- **Declarative Syntax**: Configuration scripts mostly use a declarative syntax to specify the state desired for the system.

#### Examples

- **JSON (JavaScript Object Notation)**: Although it is not a scripting language, JSON has become one of the most popular formats for configuration among all sorts of applications and services. It very easily allows one to represent structured data in a human-readable way.

json
{
“database”: {
“host”: “localhost”,
“port”: 3306
}
}

- **YAML (YAML Ain't Markup Language)**: YAML is a human-readable data serialization format commonly used for configuration files and data exchange, applied in many cases of DevOps and configuration management.

yaml
database:
host: localhost
port: 3306

### 5. **Automation Scripting Languages**

Automation scripting languages are set to automate repetitive tasks and workflows. Much used in testing, deployment, and system management to ease the process of operations, hence increasing efficiency.

#### Key Characteristics

- Task Automation: Automation scripting languages mainly focus on automating routine tasks and workflows to save time and reduce errors.
- Integration with Tools: Often, different tools and systems get integrated with these languages for function automation in areas such as testing, deployment, and monitoring.
- ** Scriptable Interfaces ** : These tools allow for scriptable interfaces, with most automation tools and platforms allowing for even more features to be customized and extended.
#### Examples
- ** Python ** : It's very popular in the automation world due to its simplicity and huge library support. In this way, it can be used in file manipulation, web scraping, and automated testing.

python

Example of Python code to rename files in a directory

import os
dir= ‘/path/to/directory’
for count, filename in enumerate:
dst =filename.replace
# Consider the new name

for filename in os.listdir("/path/to/directory"):
      os.rename(filename, filename.lower())

• Ruby: Ruby, thanks to its powerful scripting nature, is often put into use for automation purposes, especially via the Ruby on Rails framework and convenience tools, such as Capistrano, in the domain of automation for deployments.

  # Sample code for automating a task in Ruby
  Dir.glob('/path/to/directory/*').each do |file|
    File.rename(file, file.downcase)
  end

6. Embedded Scripting Languages

Embedded scripting languages are intended to be used inside other applications or systems that desire to have some kind of scripting support. They mostly get embedded at the heart of larger software systems to empower them with the ability to manipulate or expand the said system.

Key Characteristics

• Integration with Applications: A core characteristic of an embedded scripting language is that it will be designed for easy integration into an application or a system to be used to run custom scripts to automate actions from within the application or system at hand.
• User Customization: Allow an end user to write custom scripts that automate tasks or add new features to the application.
• Extensibility: Provides a way to add functionality to the host application without modifying its core code.

Examples

JavaScript in Web Browsers: JavaScript resides within web browsers, equipping a developer to generate dynamic actions on web pages. It can be invoked to change the Document Object Model (DOM) or accomplish an action based on events raised by the user.

  // JavaScript embedded in HTML to display an alert
  <script>
    alert("Welcome to the website!");
  </script>

Lua: Lua is a lightweight scripting language, often inducted into applications and games; applications generally take the place of a fully functional scripting language and the language is included only to implement the application with the ability to be extended and modified by the user.

  -- Defining character behavior in game using Lua code
  function moveCharacter(character, x, y)
    character.x = x
    character.y = y
  end

Conclusion

Modern computing relies in large part on scripting languages to automate tasks, improve software, and allow end-users to be able to customize.