Compiler Design - Overview
A compiler translates the code written in one language to some other language without changing
the meaning of the program. It is also expected that a compiler should make the target code
efficient and optimized in terms of time and space.
Compiler design principles provide an in-depth view of translation and optimization process.
Compiler design covers basic translation mechanism and error detection & recovery. It includes
lexical, syntax, and semantic analysis as front end, and code generation and optimization as back-
end.
Why to Learn Compiler design?
Computers are a balanced mix of software and hardware. Hardware is just a piece of mechanical
device and its functions are being controlled by a compatible software. Hardware understands
instructions in the form of electronic charge, which is the counterpart of binary language in
software programming. Binary language has only two alphabets, 0 and 1. To instruct, the
hardware codes must be written in binary format, which is simply a series of 1s and 0s. It would
be a difficult and cumbersome task for computer programmers to write such codes, which is why
we have compilers to write such codes.
Language Processing System
We have learnt that any computer system is made of hardware and software. The hardware
understands a language, which humans cannot understand. So we write programs in high-level
language, which is easier for us to understand and remember. These programs are then fed into
a series of tools and OS components to get the desired code that can be used by the machine.
This is known as Language Processing System.
A compiler translates the code written in one language to some other language without changing
the meaning of the program. It is also expected that a compiler should make the target code
efficient and optimized in terms of time and space.
Compiler design principles provide an in-depth view of translation and optimization process.
Compiler design covers basic translation mechanism and error detection & recovery. It includes
lexical, syntax, and semantic analysis as front end, and code generation and optimization as back-
end.
Why to Learn Compiler design?
Computers are a balanced mix of software and hardware. Hardware is just a piece of mechanical
device and its functions are being controlled by a compatible software. Hardware understands
instructions in the form of electronic charge, which is the counterpart of binary language in
software programming. Binary language has only two alphabets, 0 and 1. To instruct, the
hardware codes must be written in binary format, which is simply a series of 1s and 0s. It would
be a difficult and cumbersome task for computer programmers to write such codes, which is why
we have compilers to write such codes.
Language Processing System
We have learnt that any computer system is made of hardware and software. The hardware
understands a language, which humans cannot understand. So we write programs in high-level
language, which is easier for us to understand and remember. These programs are then fed into
a series of tools and OS components to get the desired code that can be used by the machine.
This is known as Language Processing System.
