Structured Programming in Cobol: An Approach for Application Programmers Techniques for designing and writing Cobol programs are presented. Previous work in structured programming is drawn upon and adapted. The presentation is informal: the terminology is nonmathematical as far as possible, no theorems are proved, and examples are used frequently. Top-down program design is implemented through the use of structured flowcharts, disciplined specifications, and step by step verification. A well-formed Cobol program is defined. The proper use of the GO TO and other Cobol coding practices are discussed. CACM January, 1977 Van Gelder, A. structured programming, top-down, well-formed program, GO TO statement, repeat statement, flowchart, application programming, Cobol, software reliability, program verification 4.0 4.22 5.24 CA770101 JB January 3, 1978 12:44 AM 2193 4 3004 2326 4 3004 2477 4 3004 2480 4 3004 2541 4 3004 2594 4 3004 2704 4 3004 2709 4 3004 2709 4 3004 2738 4 3004 2738 4 3004 2802 4 3004 2866 4 3004 2867 4 3004 2869 4 3004 2941 4 3004 2958 4 3004 3004 4 3004 3004 4 3004 3004 4 3004 3004 4 3004 3004 4 3004 3030 4 3004 3030 4 3004 3121 4 3004 3155 4 3004 1425 5 3004 2247 5 3004 2356 5 3004 2456 5 3004 3004 5 3004 3004 5 3004 3004 5 3004 3186 5 3004