Recursive Call ☆
Function definitions and subprograms are allowed to use themselves on their definition.
Example.
The factorial of n (n!) can be defined as follows.
1!=1
n!=n・(n-1)!
The following function FACT calculates factorials using the recursion above.
10 FUNCTION FACT(n) 20 IF n=1 THEN 30 LET FACT=1 40 ELSE 50 LET FACT=n*FACT(n-1) 60 END IF 70 END FUNCTION 80 PRINT FACT(10) 90 END
Supplementary Explanation.
The function FACT is exceuted with n=10 first.
Then to calculate n*FACT(n-1), FACT is executed with n=9 on the line 50.
And then to calculate n*FACT(n-1), FACT is executed with n=8 on the line 50 again.
This is repeated until n becomes 1.
Memory locations for all parameters of an internal function definition are newly gotten for each time they are invoked.
Memory locations for all variables of an external function definition are newly gotten for each time they are invoked.
Memory locations for all parameters except variable parameters of an internal subprogram are newly gotten for each time they are invoked.
Memory locations for all variables except variable parameters of an external subprogram are newly gotten for each time they are invoked.
Memeory locations newly gotten are removed when they return.
Note.
In an external procedure, its name need not be declared with a DECLARE EXTERNAL statement within itself.