Editing 303: Compiling
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Programs can be written in {{w|Assembly language|assembly code}}, which is basically just a set of mnemonics that make machine code much easier for a human to remember and correctly parse; the human-written assembly code is then run through a simple assembler to convert it directly into machine code. Assembly coding is necessary whenever one is programming for a completely new architecture (one for which no other tools yet exist), and is still used in some other situations (as it allows the code to be optimized more closely for the system on which it is to run than is possible with other types of coding), but is still fairly tedious and error-prone, and assembly code needs to be completely rewritten if one wants to port it to a computer with a different architecture. | Programs can be written in {{w|Assembly language|assembly code}}, which is basically just a set of mnemonics that make machine code much easier for a human to remember and correctly parse; the human-written assembly code is then run through a simple assembler to convert it directly into machine code. Assembly coding is necessary whenever one is programming for a completely new architecture (one for which no other tools yet exist), and is still used in some other situations (as it allows the code to be optimized more closely for the system on which it is to run than is possible with other types of coding), but is still fairly tedious and error-prone, and assembly code needs to be completely rewritten if one wants to port it to a computer with a different architecture. | ||
| − | + | Interpreters (e.g. that for {{w|PHP}} for one example) generally read through the code, or script, each line at a time as and when required, and has to do a lot of work with various processing overheads and the risk of hitting an invalid instruction or mistake in syntax that it can't handle. It also requires that a relevant version of the interpreter exist on any machine that has to run the script and perhaps some additional knowledge by the end-user. | |
For widely distributed (and especially commercial) programs, some form of compilation will instead be used. Compiling may have just one computer system read through the man-written code and (barring errors) produces the equivalent stand-alone and direct machine-readable code, suitable for a given range of computers. This process might involve several passes to check for 'obvious' errors in the code, as well as converting some programming concepts that are easiest for humans to understand into equivalent concepts that may be far easier for the computer to work with. | For widely distributed (and especially commercial) programs, some form of compilation will instead be used. Compiling may have just one computer system read through the man-written code and (barring errors) produces the equivalent stand-alone and direct machine-readable code, suitable for a given range of computers. This process might involve several passes to check for 'obvious' errors in the code, as well as converting some programming concepts that are easiest for humans to understand into equivalent concepts that may be far easier for the computer to work with. | ||
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The title text takes this a step further. Cueball claims that ''all'' activities are equally benign while the code is compiling — and that includes committing illegal acts, such as stealing {{w|LCD}}s. | The title text takes this a step further. Cueball claims that ''all'' activities are equally benign while the code is compiling — and that includes committing illegal acts, such as stealing {{w|LCD}}s. | ||
| − | Nine years after this comic was released, [[Randall]] made a comic called [[1755: Old Days]] about how compiling worked in the old days. It was Cueball who asked. The next comic after that, [[1756: I'm With Her]], was released the Monday before the {{w|2016 United States presidential election}}. And in that comic, a Cueball with a sword on an office chair like in this comic is featured. | + | Nine years after this comic was released, [[Randall]] made a comic called [[1755: Old Days]] about how compiling worked in the old days. It was Cueball who asked. The next comic after that, [[1756: I'm With Her]], was released the Monday before the {{w|2016 United States presidential election}}. And in that comic, a Cueball with a sword on an office chair like in this comic is featured. Seems realistic that Randall had that politically loaded comic ready for some time, and when finding and deciding to use this old version of Cueball, he may have gotten inspired by the compiling theme to make Old Days. |
==Transcript== | ==Transcript== | ||
