Question

What is a count-controlled loop?

Short answer

Answer: A count-controlled loop is a type of loop in programming that repeats a specific number of times, which is determined by a counter. The loop ends after the counter meets or exceeds a maximum threshold value. To create a count-controlled loop in Python, follow these steps: 1. Initialize the counter: Set an initial value for the counter before the loop starts. For example, `counter = 0`. 2. Define the loop condition: Determine when the loop should stop executing. For example, `while counter < 5:`. 3. Write the loop body: Include the code to be executed during each iteration, such as `print(counter)`. 4. Update the counter: Increment the counter's value by 1 at the end of the loop, like `counter += 1`. An example of a count-controlled loop in Python would be: ```python counter = 0 while counter < 5: print(counter) counter += 1 ``` This code initializes a counter with a value of 0, then runs a loop that prints the counter value until it reaches 5. The loop ends after iterating 5 times.

Step-by-step solution

Definition

A count-controlled loop is a type of loop in programming that repeats a specific number of times, which is determined by a counter. This counter indicates the number of iterations the loop should execute before stopping. The loop usually ends after the counter meets or exceeds a predetermined limit or threshold value.

Counter Initialization

The first step in using a count-controlled loop is to initialize the counter. This involves setting an initial value for the counter before the loop starts. The initial value can be any integer, but it is usually set to 0 or 1, depending on the programming language and the specific use case. For example, in Python, we might initialize a counter as follows: ```python counter = 0 ```

Loop Condition

A loop condition is defined to determine when the loop should stop executing. Typically, this condition checks whether the counter has met or exceeded the predetermined limit or threshold value. The loop will continue executing as long as the condition is True and will stop when the condition becomes False. For example, in Python, we might set a loop condition using the `while` loop with a maximum threshold of 5: ```python while counter < 5: ```

Loop Body

Inside the loop body, the actual code to be executed during each iteration is written. This generally includes code that processes data, prints output, or performs some other action required by the program. For example, in Python, we might want to print the value of the counter during each iteration: ```python print(counter) ```

Counter Update

The last step in using a count-controlled loop is to update the counter in each iteration. The usual method to update the counter is to increment its value by 1 at the end of the loop, ensuring that the loop progresses towards its end condition. For example, in Python, we might update the counter by incrementing it by 1 at the end of the loop body: ```python counter += 1 ```

Complete Example

Putting all the steps together, a complete example of a count-controlled loop in Python would look like this: ```python counter = 0 while counter < 5: print(counter) counter += 1 ``` This code initializes a counter with a value of 0, then runs a loop that prints the counter value until it reaches 5. The loop ends after iterating 5 times.