A Glossary of Computer Architecture

Assembly languages are closely related to computer architecture, a few terms of which are given below:
Stored-program computers
A computer stores both its program instructions and its working data in the same internal electronic memory. The Central Processing Unit (CPU) executes software instructions one by one.
x86 (IA-32)
A CPU running in 32-bit mode, with 32-bit registers, 32-bit memory addresses, and a maximum of 4 GB (232 bytes) addressable RAM

x64 (x86-64 / AMD64)
A 64-bit extension of x86, supports vastly larger memory (theoretically 16 exabytes, practically limited by OS/hardware), more registers, and enhanced performance

ISA (Instruction Set Architecture)
An ISA is the abstract interface between a processor’s hardware and the software it runs. Think of the ISA as a contract or design specification, and assembly language as the practical implementation tool you use to write software conforming to that contract.



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