goTo

GOTO is a control-flow mechanism used by many programming languages to transfer execution unconditionally to another point in a program, identified by a label. The target label can be a numeric line number, common in older languages, or a named symbol defined elsewhere in the same scope. When executed, the goto transfers control to the specified label, bypassing intermediate code.

Historically, goto-like jumps date from early programming and assembly languages. Fortran and BASIC used goto to jump to labeled statements or line numbers. The C programming language, developed in the 1970s, also includes a goto statement, allowing jumps to labels within the same function. Over time, languages have varied in how freely such jumps are allowed, and some have restricted or removed them.

Syntax and usage can vary by language, but the core idea remains: a statement that unconditionally redirects program execution to a labeled location. For example, in C-like syntax, a label is defined as an identifier followed by a colon, and a goto statement transfers control to that label. A simple pattern is to use goto to exit multiple nested blocks or to perform centralized cleanup code via a single exit path.

Criticism of goto centers on readability and maintainability. Edsger Dijkstra famously argued that goto leads to unstructured, tangled control flows, a view that helped popularize structured programming with loops, conditionals, and function calls. Nevertheless, goto persists in some contexts, particularly in low-level or performance-critical code where a single cleanup or exit point can simplify resource management.

Modern usage varies by language. Many languages discourage or prohibit goto, or reserve the keyword but do not implement it. In C and C++, goto remains available but is generally advised against except for specific scenarios such as error handling and cleanup patterns. Variants include computed gotos in some systems, enabling indirect jumps to addresses computed at runtime.