difference between interpreter and compiler and assembler

Programs written in some high level languages are 'interpreted' rather than compiled. Getting it back to the original source code (called 'reverse engineering') is very difficult to do. If anyone tries to view the object code to see how the program was written, they won't get very far! All they will see is a lot of ones and zeros. You can therefore put the object code (but not the original source code) on a DVD and sell it. The compiler's job is finished once it has translated the code. Once you have the object code, it will run without the compiler. Interestingly, the object code is what you would buy in a shop when you buy a game, for example. Once compiled with no errors, the object code can then be run by the processor. If the programmer makes any corrections, then the whole program has to be re-compiled again. If there are any problems with the code, the compiler will report these problems at the end of the compilation process. Unlike assemblers, a single keyword in a compiled program will get converted into many machine code instructions. A compiler is a type of translator, which takes an entire program after it is finished (the source code) and converts it into object code in one complete go. Programs written in some high level languages are 'compiled' to get them into object code, which the processor can then use. Each of these assembly program instructions in general can be converted to just one machine code instruction by the assembler so in general, these types of programs run very quickly compared to compiled or interpreted programs. These help the programmer remember instructions.Īlthough it may not appear so at first, these mnemonics are quite close to machine code.

We saw in a previous section what part of an assembly program might look like. There are three types of translators: assemblers, compilers and interpreters.Īn assembler is the type of translator that converts assembly programs into machine code instructions.

If a program is written in a high level language, or indeed an assembly language, then it has to be translated into machine code instructions before the processor can run it. We have already seen that processors can only run machine code instructions.

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Difference between interpreter and compiler and assembler