In earlier days when computers were recently launched we do not have lots of software or even operating system then we have to work a lot with hardware.
We cannot directly communicate with the hardware, we have to write some code in a specific language that computer hardware can understand and those languages in which we write the code is known as low-level language. These are the main source of communication with computer hardware. While proceeding further with this article we will learn what is low-level language, low-level language examples, advantages and disadvantages of low-level languages.
What is Low-Level Language?
Low-level language can be understood as the programming languages that are much closer to the machine’s architecture. These languages are not easily understandable by humans and provide a direct way to communicate with computer hardware. In many cases, they are used to write system-level software like firmware, operating systems, and device drivers.
The main reason for providing direct access to the computer’s hardware and system’s resource is to provide better performance and greater control. Low-level language allows the programmers to write the software and interacts directly with the computer’s hardware, which makes it possible to achieve a great level of efficiency and performance. The main goal of the low-level language is to provide a programming environment that is close to hardware which will allow programmers to write the most efficient and optimized code but at the cost of increased difficulty and complexity.
Low-Level Language Examples
There are mainly two low-level language examples and they are basically the category in which we divide the low-level language they are
- Machine Language: They include binary Codes.
- Assembly Language: Uses mnemonic codes
Machine Language
Machine language is the lowest-level programming language. It is a binary code consisting of 0s and 1s that the computer can directly execute. The machine language instructions are specific to the computer’s architecture, and they vary from one computer to another. Machine language is not practical for human programmers to use, but it is still used by the computer’s hardware to execute instructions.
Example of Machine Language
Here is an example of machine language instruction:
01001000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111Explanation of the above example
This instruction is equivalent to the ASCII code for the letter "H". In machine language, each instruction is represented by a series of 0s and 1s. Machine language is difficult to read and write, and it is not very practical for human programmers to use.
Assembly Language
Assembly language is a low-level programming language that uses mnemonic codes to represent machine language instructions. These mnemonic codes are easier to read and remember than binary codes. Assembly language is specific to the computer’s architecture, and it must be translated into machine language before the computer can execute it. Assembly language is still used today in system-level programming, such as device drivers and embedded systems.
Example of Assembly Language
Here is an example of an assembly language instruction:
MOV AX, 0005hExplanation of the above code
This instruction moves the value "0005h" into the AX register. The AX register is a 16-bit register used for arithmetic operations in the x86 architecture. Assembly language is still used today in system-level programming, such as device drivers and embedded systems.
Is C or C++ a Low-Level Language
Even though C and C++ are regarded as high-level computer languages, they have characteristics that let developers write low-level code.
Because it has characteristics like direct memory access and pointer manipulation that enable coders to create low-level code as well as higher-level entities like functions and structures, C is frequently referred to as a mid-level language.
In addition to providing extra elements like classes, object-oriented programming, and templates, C++ is a superset of C. Despite having features like direct memory manipulation that enable coders to create low-level code, C++ is usually regarded as a high-level language due to its extra abstractions and features.
Advantages of Low-Level Language
Here are some of the advantages of low-level languages:
- They are better at performance compared to high-level languages as they provide direct control over the computer’s hardware.
- They are better at memory management as the programmers can manage the computer memory directly which results in faster execution times.
- We can write highly efficient code in low-level languages and that code is used in software that requires high efficiency.
- Debugging is comparatively easy in low-level language as it is closer to hardware.
Disadvantages of Low-Level Languages
Low-level language also has disadvantages some of which are mentioned below:
- The programmers must know deeply about computer hardware, how it works and operates, and which languages are used to interact with it.
- The programmers have to write the code for hardware which means there is no space for error so they have to write error-free code.
- They are sometimes time-consuming because we need to manage the memory and complexity of the instructions.
- They are comparatively less portable than high-level languages as they have to be hardware specific.
Conclusion
Low-level languages provide a direct way of communicating with the computer’s hardware. They are not easily understood by humans, but they are necessary for writing system-level software. Assembly language and machine language are examples of low-level languages that are still used today in system-level programming. Although low-level languages are difficult to read and write, they are essential for creating software that interacts directly with the computer’s hardware.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of some of the frequently asked questions and answers about low-level languages.
1. Can we use low-level languages to write web applications?
Yes we can use them to create web applications but they are not recommended as they require a deep understanding of the computer’s architecture and are time-consuming.
2. Can we use low-level languages to write operating systems?
Yes they are used to write operating systems as they provide direct access to computer resources.
3. Write various purposes for using low-level language.
They can be used to write user-level software like operating systems, firmware, and device drivers.
4. What are the skills required for a low-level language programmer?
A low-level language programmer must have a deep understanding of the computer’s architecture and be proficient in assembly language or machine language programming.
5. Is Java a low-level language?
No java is not a low-level language.