"Certain programming languages, like Python or Go or C++, are called "high-level" because they work sort of like human language, written in commands and idioms that might fit in at a poetry slam. Generally speaking, a piece of software like a compiler transforms this into what the machine really reads: blocks of 1s and 0s (or maybe hex) that tell actual transistors how to behave."
"Why would anyone do this? I recently asked Sawyer, who lives in his native Scotland. He told me that efficiency was one reason. In the 1990s, the tools for high-level programming weren't all there. Compilers were terribly slow. Debuggers sucked. Sawyer could avoid them by doing his own thing in x86 assembly, the lingua franca of Intel chips. We both knew that wasn't the real reason, though."
Chips perform best when software speaks their native machine language; assembly maps nearly one-to-one to hardware instructions. Assembly programming offers maximal efficiency and control, avoiding reliance on slow or immature compilers and poor debuggers, especially in the 1990s. Chris Sawyer built complex games like RollerCoaster Tycoon and Transport Tycoon in x86 assembly, trading modern tooling for handcrafted performance. The work blends obsessive technical craftsmanship with personal passion, likened to meticulous model-hobby or tapestry making. Low-level coding demands deep understanding of instruction sets, memory, and transistor behavior to squeeze out optimal performance.
Read at WIRED
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