Maskinsprog

Maskinsprog, also known as machine code or machine language, is the lowest-level programming language understood directly by a computer's central processing unit (CPU). It consists of a set of binary instructions, represented as sequences of 0s and 1s, that tell the CPU precisely what operations to perform. Each type of CPU has its own unique instruction set, meaning maskinsprog for one processor may not be compatible with another.

Writing programs directly in maskinsprog is a complex and time-consuming task. It requires a deep understanding of the computer's architecture and involves managing memory addresses and processor registers manually. Due to its difficulty, maskinsprog is rarely used for general programming today. Instead, programmers typically use higher-level programming languages like Python, Java, or C++. These languages are more human-readable and abstract away the complexities of the underlying hardware.

Compilers and assemblers are used to translate code written in higher-level languages into maskinsprog. An assembler translates assembly language, a symbolic representation of maskinsprog, into machine code. A compiler translates code from a high-level language into either assembly language or directly into maskinsprog. While maskinsprog itself is not directly programmed by most users, it is the fundamental language that all software ultimately executes as. Understanding maskinsprog provides insight into how computers operate at their most basic level.