tepples wrote:
So what's the general term for a program whose input is the source code of a computer program and whose output is object code?
Sometimes "build" is a suitable word for this process. I don't think I've ever heard of a program "builder", though this seems a natural extension. I happily use "compile" to refer to any process of turning code into an executable; the word is quite useful in this generic sense. In some ways it's better than "build" because the specific association with code is stronger, build is appropriate for a much wider category of things.
I also use "compile" and "assemble" and "link" to mean these specific things, at times. These words are also quite useful in that way as well, especially when describing a build process in detail.
I can't think of a single case in my life where the dual meaning of "compile" has actually caused confusion. The only problem it seems to cause is a pedantic response.