“Hello, World!” is symbolic of firsts.
Definition
The phrase refers to a small demo program whose goal is to send the message "Hello, World!". It is often the simplest program one can write in a language, and for this reason is also the first program many will encounter.
(For most languages, anyway.)
Purpose
A Hello World program showcases the minimum syntax necessary to get a working program. Its simplicity makes it ideal for demonstration, especially for people without coding experience.
There are many analogs of this idea across different media.
Examples
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| console.log("Hello, World!")
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| public class Main {
public static void main(String args[]) {
System.out.println("Hello, World!");
}
}
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| #include <iostream>
int main() {
std::cout << "Hello, World!" << std::endl;
return 0;
}
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