6. Semantics of the while statement

Answer:
Yes.

Semantics of the while statement

Here is the while statement, again:

while ( condition )
  loop body            // a statement or block statement

statement after the loop

Here is how the while statement works. In the following, the word control means "the statement that is executing".

• When control reaches the while statement, the condition determines if the loop body is to be executed.
• When the condition is true, the loop body is executed.
  • After the loop body is executed, control is sent back to the while, which again evaluates the condition.
• When the condition is false, the loop body is skipped.
  • Control is sent to whatever statement follows the loop body.
• Once execution has passed to the statement after the loop, the while statement is finished, at least for now.
• If the condition is false the very first time it is evaluated, the loop body will not be executed even once.

Here is the while loop from the example program:

int count = 1;                                  // start count out at one
while ( count <= 3)                             // loop while count is <= 3
{
  System.out.println( "count is:" + count );
  count = count + 1;                            // add one to count
}
System.out.println( "Done with the loop" );     // statement after the loop           

Question 6:
The variable count is used in three different activities. It is initialized, tested, 
and changed. Where in the program does each of these events take place?