Optimizing compilers, which turn human-readable programming languages into the smallest, most efficient machine code possible, are among the most complex pieces of software ever written. Building a compiler is both science and black art and demands an intimate knowledge of data structures, algorithms, high-level programming languages, and processor architectures and their instruction sets.
Advanced Compiler Design and Implementation presents a comprehensive and technically up-to-date look at design of real-world compilers for CISC- and RISC-based uni-processor architectures. The author led the advanced compiler design and implementation teams for both Hewlett-Packard's PA-RISC and Sun Microsystems's SPARC processors.
Customer Reviews & Comments
This book is the comprehensive text for anyone working on an optimizing compiler for uniprocessor systems. It gives good detail on all major approaches and is up-to-date on important techniques like SSA form and partial redundancy information. As someone working directly in the field, it's saved me the effort of hunting up original research papers in many areas. One drawback for this book as a practical tool: the pseudocode used to illustrate examples is often pretty far from being suitable for real implementations. A warning: this is not an introductory book, and people who want to learn about the basics of building a compiler should look elsewhere; perhaps Andrew Appel's ``Modern Compilers'' series. Muchnick's book is for people who want to write compilers which generate high-performance code.
