Simulation as an aid to machine code teaching
I. R. MacCallum, B J O’Mahoney, K Knowles · ITNOW · 1972
The idea of simulating one computer on another is not new. Interest in such simulators has been shown principally by manufacturers who have offered system compatibility using both hardware and software simulation of an obsolescent computer’s architecture, in an effort to defer some of their prospective customers’ re-programming load. In sharp contrast, manufacturers have also simulated new architecture on existing machines whilst a new machine is at the design stage to gain additional insight into the architecture of the new machine. This paper discusses another area of interest in simulators, and argues that these may be of great benefit in teaching the principles of machine code programming to large numbers of students and that such a simulator can be written with modest effort. The teaching of assembly language programming in a degree course in Computing Science is not universally held to be either important or necessary. Those who argue against it claim that most systems programming, if not at present then in three to five years’ time, will be done in low level languages such as PL360 [1], SPG [2], SWL [3], BCPL [4].