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Questions and Answers
Questions and Answers
Which of the following best describes the relationship between assembly language and processor architecture?
Which of the following best describes the relationship between assembly language and processor architecture?
- Assembly language is only related to the operating system.
- Assembly language directly reflects the architecture of the processor. (correct)
- Assembly language is an abstraction of high-level languages.
- Assembly language is independent of the processor architecture.
What is a key distinction between CISC and RISC processors concerning instruction complexity?
What is a key distinction between CISC and RISC processors concerning instruction complexity?
- CISC processors use a mix of simple and complex instructions, while RISC processors favor simple instructions. (correct)
- CISC processors are limited to register-based operands, RISC processors are more flexible.
- There is no difference; both CISC and RISC processors handle instruction complexity the same way.
- CISC processors use only simple instructions, while RISC processors use complex instructions.
An assembly-language program's time efficiency is a direct result of what property?
An assembly-language program's time efficiency is a direct result of what property?
- The compiler's ability to smartly optimize the code.
- Portability, allowing for optimization across different platforms.
- Specificity, programs contain only code necessary for the task. (correct)
- The large storage capacity of assembly language programs.
What is the role of an assembler program in the context of assembly language?
What is the role of an assembler program in the context of assembly language?
What is the PRIMARY advantage of high-level languages (like C) over assembly language?
What is the PRIMARY advantage of high-level languages (like C) over assembly language?
Which component's width determines the memory-addressing capacity of a processor?
Which component's width determines the memory-addressing capacity of a processor?
Which term describes a group of electrical signals or wires that carry signals among computer components?
Which term describes a group of electrical signals or wires that carry signals among computer components?
In a bus transaction, what is the role of the 'master'?
In a bus transaction, what is the role of the 'master'?
What is the term for the time required for memory to retrieve data at an addressed location?
What is the term for the time required for memory to retrieve data at an addressed location?
Which memory technology requires periodic refreshing to maintain its stored data?
Which memory technology requires periodic refreshing to maintain its stored data?
What distinguishes volatile memory from its counterpart?
What distinguishes volatile memory from its counterpart?
Which type of memory allows a user to selectively erase its contents electrically?
Which type of memory allows a user to selectively erase its contents electrically?
Which term describes a memory organization where the most significant byte of a multi-byte data field is stored at the lowest memory address?
Which term describes a memory organization where the most significant byte of a multi-byte data field is stored at the lowest memory address?
What component typically manages the specific operation of an I/O device?
What component typically manages the specific operation of an I/O device?
What is the purpose of the command register in a typical I/O controller?
What is the purpose of the command register in a typical I/O controller?
What is the main difference between memory-mapped I/O and isolated I/O?
What is the main difference between memory-mapped I/O and isolated I/O?
What is the default mode of program execution?
What is the default mode of program execution?
How is branching typically implemented at the machine level?
How is branching typically implemented at the machine level?
What is the main advantage of using PC-relative addressing in a branch instruction?
What is the main advantage of using PC-relative addressing in a branch instruction?
What is the primary difference between branch and procedure call instructions?
What is the primary difference between branch and procedure call instructions?
Which location does the Pentium processor use to store a return address when a procedure is called?
Which location does the Pentium processor use to store a return address when a procedure is called?
In the context of procedural programming, what does the 'register method' refer to?
In the context of procedural programming, what does the 'register method' refer to?
What is the main drawback of relying solely on the 'register method' for parameter passing?
What is the main drawback of relying solely on the 'register method' for parameter passing?
What is the side effect of data unalignment?
What is the side effect of data unalignment?
The asm construct facilitates what kind of programming?
The asm construct facilitates what kind of programming?
What is the purpose of the clobber list in extended inline assembly?
What is the purpose of the clobber list in extended inline assembly?
Which flag is used to indicate stack overflow/underflow?
Which flag is used to indicate stack overflow/underflow?
What action does the first instruction (shl/shr) perform on a register (AL) when a number of arithmetic shifts are performed?
What action does the first instruction (shl/shr) perform on a register (AL) when a number of arithmetic shifts are performed?
What is the purpose of the TEST construction?
What is the purpose of the TEST construction?
Which of the mentioned actions does the processor need to do only in the real mode?
Which of the mentioned actions does the processor need to do only in the real mode?
Under special circumstances which of these instructions is used to perform conversions?
Under special circumstances which of these instructions is used to perform conversions?
Under what condition would you assume and apply a specific instruction, or operation?
Under what condition would you assume and apply a specific instruction, or operation?
Questions and Answers
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Flashcards
Flashcards
Assembler
Assembler
A software which translates assembly language code into machine language.
Assembly language mnemonic
Assembly language mnemonic
A mnemonic for a computer operation performed by a processors
CISC
CISC
Computer with complex instructions simplifying the implementation of high-level language statements.
Assembler
Assembler
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PC-relative address
PC-relative address
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Relocatable code
Relocatable code
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Mixed-mode program
Mixed-mode program
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Space efficiency
Space efficiency
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Time efficiency
Time efficiency
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System-independent program
System-independent program
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System-dependent program
System-dependent program
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System bus
System bus
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System bus components
System bus components
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System Memory unit
System Memory unit
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Memory access time
Memory access time
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System clock
System clock
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Hertz (Hz)
Hertz (Hz)
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Two assembly variables
Two assembly variables
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Direct addressing
Direct addressing
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Indirect addressing mode
Indirect addressing mode
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Addressing mode
Addressing mode
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Macro
Macro
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MUL and IMUL
MUL and IMUL
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Conditional jump
Conditional jump
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Procedure
Procedure
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Segment descriptor
Segment descriptor
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Simulator
Simulator
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LIFO
LIFO
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I/O port
I/O port
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Clock cycle
Clock cycle
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Data type
Data type
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Pentium processor
Pentium processor
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Array
Array
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Offset in memory
Offset in memory
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Reduced instruction set computer (RISC)
Reduced instruction set computer (RISC)
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Base system
Base system
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Study Notes
Study Notes
Texts in Computer Science
- This book is part of the "Texts in Computer Science" series.
- The editors are David Gries and Fred B. Schneider.
Introduction to Assembly Language Programming
- This book is an introduction to assembly language programming.
- It is suitable for Pentium and RISC processors.
- The book contains 75 illustrations.
- Sivarama P. Dandamudi is the author.
- The book covers assembly language programming for both Complex Instruction Set Computing (CISC) and Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) processors.
- The Intel Pentium processor is used as a representative of the CISC category.
- The MIPS processor is selected to explore RISC assembly language.
- The second edition is revised to reflect changes since the first edition, including RISC assembly language programming
- The assembly language code is translated into machine language code by a program called Assembler.
- NASM (Netwide Assembler), MASM (Microsoft Assembler) and TASM (Borland Turbo Assembler) are popular assemblers for Pentium Processors, but the book focuses on NASM.
- The first edition used MASM/TASM assemblers whereas the second editions uses the NASM assembler as NASM is free and works with both Microsoft Windows and Linux.
- Consistent with the shift to NASM, the second edition moved away from DOS to Linux.
- The book is a text for undergraduate courses in computer science, computer engineering, and electrical engineering.
- It can be used as a companion text in a computer organization course.
- It is also suitable for self-study by computer professionals and engineers
- The web site for the book www.scs.carleton.ca/~sivarama/asm_book has chapter-by-chapter PowerPoint slides for instructors.
- The book assumes the student has experience in a structured, high-level language such as C
- The book does not assume a background in computer organization and presents all necessary background material.
- The book contains a methodical organization of chapters for a step-by-step introduction to the assembly language.
- Extensive examples are used in each chapter to illustrate the points discussed with rationale as to why an instruction is designed the way it is
- Procedures are introduced early on to encourage modular programming in developing assembly language programs.
- A set of input and output routines are provided so students can focus on developing assembly language programs instead of low level OS functions.
- All examples given are complete in the sense that they can be assembled and run.
- All examples and other required software are available from the book's web site.
- Most chapters are written in such a way that each can be covered in two or three 60-minute lectures.
- Important concepts are emphasized in the lectures, with other material left as reading assignments
- Interchapter dependencies are kept to a minimum giving instructors flexibility in organizing material,
- Chapters clearly indicate objectives, providing an overview at the beginning and a summary at the end.
- Each chapter contains two types of exercises—review and programming—to reinforce concepts.
- The appendices provide special reference material with thorough treatment of various topics.
- The 18 chapters are divided into 6 parts according to chapter dependencies.
- Part I presents introductory topics and consists of the first two chapters.
- Chapter 1 introduces assembly language and gives reasons for programming in the assembly language.
- Chapter 2 presents the basics of computer organization focusing on three system components: processor, memory, and I/O.
- Part II is dedicated to Pentium assembly language programming with Chapters 3 through 11.
- It begins with a description of the Pentium processor organization (Chapter 3) sufficient for effective assembly language programming.
- Chapter 4 gives an overview of the assembly language
- Chapters 3 to 6 should be covered in detail with the remaining five chapters in any order.
- Part III is dedicated to the MIPS assembly language programming with Chapter 12 describing RISC design and MIPS processor details.
- The MIPS assembly language is presented in Chapter 13 with details on the SPIM simulator for use on a Pentium-based PC.
- Part IV focuses on Pentium's interrupt processing mechanism covering protected-mode and real-mode interrupt processing.
- Chapter 14 details protected-mode interrupt processing facilitated by Linux system calls.
- Chapter 15 discusses real-mode interrupt processing using DOS to explore programmed I/O and interrupt-driven I/O.
- Part V constitutes the remaining 3 of the 18 chapters and deals with advanced topics.
- Chapter 16 focuses on how recursive procedures are implemented in Pentium and MIPS assembly languages.
- Chapter 17 deals with the high-level language interface allowing mixed-mode programming using C and assembly language.
- The last chapter discusses Pentium's floating-point instructions
- The seven appendices provide reference material for the student including discussion of number systems, I/O routines, debugging, and selected Pentium and MIPS instructions.
Part 1: Overview
- This part consists of two chapters.
- The first chapter introduces assembly language and gives reasons for programming in assembly language, informally introducing the two main processor designs: CISC and RISC.
- The second chapter presents the basics of computer organization with a focus on three system components: processor, memory, and I/O and why data alignment improves performance.
Chapter 1
- Assembly language is introduced and explained where it fits in the hierarchy of computer languages.
- The advantages and disadvantages associated with programming in the assembly language are discussed.
- Provided is motivation to learn the assembly language and demonstrate performance advantages of assembly language.
- Users of a computer system can interact at several levels including through an application program, or using a programming language to facilitate interaction at a lower level.
- High-level programming languages can be used to develop modular programs providing high-level constructs such as if-then-else and while.
- Assembly language is briefly introduced, followed by highlighting the main advantages of high-level languages, and the need for, and typical application areas that benefit from programming in, assembly language.
- Reasons and performance advantages for learning the assembly language are presented, and the chapter is summarized.
A User's View of Computer Systems
- A user's view of a computer system depends on the degree of abstraction provided by the underlying software.
- A hierarchy of levels with which users can interact with a compute
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