masinkood

Masinkood, also known as machine code, is the lowest-level programming language of a computer. It consists of a sequence of binary or hexadecimal instructions that the processor can execute directly. Each instruction encodes an operation (such as add, load, or jump) and the operands (such as registers or memory addresses). Machine code is architecture-specific; the exact encoding depends on the processor’s instruction set architecture (ISA), such as x86, ARM, or MIPS.

Writing machine code by hand is impractical; higher-level languages and, historically, assembly language are used. Assembly provides mnemonic opcodes and symbols, which an assembler translates into machine code. Compilers and linkers later transform high-level source code into executable machine code for a target ISA.

Execution: The CPU fetches instructions from memory, decodes the opcode and operands, and carries out the operation, updating registers and memory. The instruction set defines how data is moved, how arithmetic is performed, and how control flow changes. Some ISAs use fixed-length instructions (for example certain RISC architectures), while others use variable-length encodings (such as many x86 instructions). Endianness determines how multi-byte operands are arranged in memory.

Practical notes: Because machine code is tied to hardware, software for one ISA generally cannot run on another without translation or emulation. In contemporary systems, machine code is produced by compilers or just-in-time compilers and is the final target of the compilation process.

Historical note: Machine code emerged with the advent of stored-program computers and remains fundamental to how software interacts with hardware, forming the essential target for all software development.