The Contour Model Architecture and Assembly Language
John B. Johnston · 1989
Abstract : The purpose of this report is limited to presenting the tagged record structure of the Contour Model Architecture CMA, the static structure of individual snapshots of a nested module computation as realized in CMA, and the Contour Model Assembly Language CMAL. Pedagogic illustrations of the CMAL-level evolution of a nested module computation are given in a separate report. The Contour Model CM as it currently exists can account for most of the semantic features of a broad spectrum of nested module computations; CM does not yet contain specific features for input/output, interrupts, or selectively restricted memory access. The architecture CMA and the assembly language CMAL together constitute a detailed operational mechanism which realized CM as it currently exists. SMA is a relatively conventional, fully tagged, stack-oriented architecture whose tagged record structure and assembly language are intended to be implemented in microcode.