Re: [9fans] FP register usage in Plan9 assembler

[lucio@proxima.alt.za]

> Plan 9 assembly is nice because it looks mostly the
> same, and the simple addressing modes are mostly consistent, but it's
> far from being really consistent between architectures.

Personally, I agree with the view that trying to generalise assemblers
across platforms is chasing a chimera.  I loved the Univac assembler I
cut my teeth on and nothing has ever given me even a hint of the
comfort I found there.  But I got used to the 8088 assembler and
managed to do some convincing work with it (I won't list the number of
issues I thought were total mindlessness by a crowd of engineers with
no visible theoretical background).

On today's platforms, assembler is not an option, it is a nightmare.
Add all the hardware trickery that belongs to microprocessors, not to
an adult computer, doesn't make anything more palatable.  Really, why
should the job of arranging memory on start up belong in the kernel
and not in a piece of dedicated logic that gets the job done and then
gets out of the way permanently, preferably switches off?

One of these day some hardware engineer will figure a way to move the
logic of the power supply into the CPU.  No, wait, we already have
voltage selections at different temperature as a kernel function, I
believe!

Bottom line?  Bless the Go Gods for having successfully subverted much
of this nonsense by providing a cross-platform development tool that
actually does what it says on the tin, despite efforts by the hardware
suppliers to relegate software development (the real thing, not
kid-scripting - or is it script-kidding?) to the smallest viable elite
of life-challenged droids.

I really do feel better now, doctor!

Lucio.