What is Assembly Language

The assembly language is a low-level programming language that is very close to machine language, that is, the binary code we saw in the previous entry.

Unlike high-level languages like C++ or Java, which are easier for humans to understand, assembly language is designed to be easier for the processor to understand.

Assembly language is a programming language that uses mnemonics to represent the instructions that will be executed in the processor. These mnemonics are translated by the assembler into their equivalent in binary code.

For example, the ADD instruction in assembly represents an addition operation in the processor. The assembler converts this instruction to its equivalent in binary code so that the processor can execute it.

An example of a program in assembly language would be:

section .data
    message db 'Hello, world!', 0

section .text
    global _start

_start:
    ; Write the message to the console
    mov eax, 4             ; System call code to write to screen
    mov ebx, 1             ; Standard output file descriptor (stdout)
    mov ecx, message       ; Address of the message to print
    mov edx, 13            ; Length of the message
    int 0x80               ; System interrupt to make the call

    ; Exit the program
    mov eax, 1             ; System call code to exit
    xor ebx, ebx           ; Return value (0)
    int 0x80               ; System interrupt to make the call

As we can see, as a programming language it is still quite horrible. But it already has some of the points that we will see in programming languages such as:

• Blocks
• Variables
• Comments
• Entry and exit point

Translating assembly to machine code

The process of translating the assembly language to binary code is carried out through the assembly process. It is precisely this process that gives the programming language its name.

The assembly process uses an instruction table and its equivalent in opcodes to convert the instructions written in assembly to binary code.

For example, if the ADD instruction is found in the source code during assembly, it will look in the instruction table for the corresponding addition operation in binary code and generate the necessary binary code for the processor to execute that operation.

The assembly language is a very low-level programming language that is used to program systems that require precise control over processor resources.

Its relationship with binary code is very close, as it uses mnemonics to represent the instructions that are translated into binary code. In fact, the assembly process is a simple process, basically a direct translation using tables.

Assembly language is not frequently used today. But it is still used to program systems that require precise control over processor resources, such as operating systems, device drivers, real-time software.