Ideal for undergraduate courses in computer organization, assembly language programming, and computer architecture, An Assembly Language Introduction to Computer Architecture: Using the Intel Pentium introduces students to the fundamentals of computer architecture from a programmer's perspective by teaching them assembly language, the interface between hardware and software. Designed for students in computer science and engineering who have taken one high-level language programming course, it uses a top-down approach, introducing an abstract (registerless) assembly language first. This approach enables students to build on previous knowledge and allows them to write programs from the beginning of the course. Topics covered include basic computer organization, data representation, data structures, the assembly process, exception handling, and more. Examples are developed using the very popular Intel Pentium architecture; however, the concepts covered are valid with any system. This accessible text is supplemented with a helpful website (http: //www.cs.wisc.edu/ smoler/x86text.html) that contains macros to use with programming tools, lecture notes to accompany the text, sample programs, and other useful items.

This book is about two separate but related topics: assembly language programming and computer architecture. This is based on the notion that it is not possible to study computer architecture in any depth without some knowledge of assembly language programming and similarly, one of the reasons for studying assembly language programming is to gain an insight into how computers work - which naturally leads to their architecture. Introducing Assembly Language Programming and Computer Architecture is ideal for first year computer science or engineering students taking degree and diploma level courses. It will also be a useful reference for computer enthusiasts wishing to advance their knowledge and programming skills.

This hands-on tutorial is a broad examination of how a modern computer works. Classroom tested for over a decade, it gives readers a firm understanding of how computers do what they do, covering essentials like data storage, logic gates and transistors, data types, the CPU, assembly, and machine code. Introduction to Computer Organization gives programmers a practical understanding of what happens in a computer when you execute your code. You may never have to write x86-64 assembly language or design hardware yourself, but knowing how the hardware and software works will give you greater control and confidence over your coding decisions. We start with high level fundamental concepts like memory organization, binary logic, and data types and then explore how they are implemented at the assembly language level. The goal isn’t to make you an assembly programmer, but to help you comprehend what happens behind the scenes between running your program and seeing “Hello World” displayed on the screen. Classroom-tested for over a decade, this book will demystify topics like: How to translate a high-level language code into assembly language How the operating system manages hardware resources with exceptions and interrupts How data is encoded in memory How hardware switches handle decimal data How program code gets transformed into machine code the computer understands How pieces of hardware like the CPU, input/output, and memory interact to make the entire system work Author Robert Plantz takes a practical approach to the material, providing examples and exercises on every page, without sacrificing technical details. Learning how to think like a computer will help you write better programs, in any language, even if you never look at another line of assembly code again.

Detailed coverage of architecture/hardware topics such as CPU, microprocessors, large computer architecture and fault tolerance architecture makes this a valuable reference. For computer science and electrical engineering professionals as well as VAX assembly language programmers.

It is a great pleasure to write a preface to this book. In my view, the content is unique in that it blends traditional teaching approaches with the use of mathematics and a mainstream Hardware Design Language (HDL) as formalisms to describe key concepts. The book keeps the “machine” separate from the “application” by strictly following a bottom-up approach: it starts with transistors and logic gates and only introduces assembly language programs once their execution by a processor is clearly de ned. Using a HDL, Verilog in this case, rather than static circuit diagrams is a big deviation from traditional books on computer architecture. Static circuit diagrams cannot be explored in a hands-on way like the corresponding Verilog model can. In order to understand why I consider this shift so important, one must consider how computer architecture, a subject that has been studied for more than 50 years, has evolved. In the pioneering days computers were constructed by hand. An entire computer could (just about) be described by drawing a circuit diagram. Initially, such d- grams consisted mostly of analogue components before later moving toward d- ital logic gates. The advent of digital electronics led to more complex cells, such as half-adders, ip- ops, and decoders being recognised as useful building blocks.

For freshman/sophomore-level courses in Assembly Language Programming, Introduction to Computer Organization, and Introduction to Computer Architecture. Students using this text will gain an understanding of how the functional components of modern computers are put together and how a computer works at the machine language level. MIPS architecture embodies the fundamental design principles of all contemporary RISC architectures. By incorporating this text into their courses, instructors will be able to prepare their undergraduate students to go on to upper-division computer organization courses.