Programming code tells the computer to do something, but what makes the code actually mean anything to the computer?
In: Engineering
Programs are usually written in a “programming language” that is easy for people to learn and use. Then there is “machine language”, basically a string of 1s and 0s arranged in complex patterns that a computer can understand.
In-between the person and and the computer is a special program called the “compiler”. It takes your programming language and turns it into machine language. They’re like an interpreter; if I need to talk to somebody who speaks Russian, but I only speak English, I have to find someone who speaks both to translate what I’m saying.
Why don’t programmers all just learn machine language? Well, it’s really, really hard. And it takes a long time to say anything. So the smartest ones who can speak it come up with a programming language that the rest of us can understand. Then the first things they do are write a compiler and publish a dictionary and rules of their language.
Source: am programmer.
EDIT: If you’re also curious about what the 1s and 0s mean to the computer, check out some of the excellent engineering comments.
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