ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Communicating Sequential Processes

Communicating Sequential Processes (CSP) is a way of writing computer programs that focuses on the order and flow of how things happen. It helps you to think about how different parts of your program communicate with each other.

In CSP, you start with the process that you want to perform. You can think of it as a list of steps that need to be taken, like ingredients in a recipe. Each step is written as a message that can be sent or received between two parts of the program. For example, one part might send a message to another part to say, “Hey, do this task for me.” Then, the other part could send back a message saying “Sure, I’ll do it.”

Once the messages are written, you can link them together to form a kind of flowchart. This flowchart describes the order of steps that need to be taken to complete the process. For example, if one part of the program needs to send a message before another part can do its work, then the flowchart will show that.

CSP is a great way to think about how different parts of a program interact and can help make your program more efficient.