Inside the Machine: An Illustrated Introduction to Microprocessors and Computer Architecture

Jon Stokes

Jan 2007 · No Starch Press

About this ebook

Computers perform countless tasks ranging from the business critical to the recreational, but regardless of how differently they may look and behave, they're all amazingly similar in basic function. Once you understand how the microprocessor-or central processing unit (CPU)-works, you'll have a firm grasp of the fundamental concepts at the heart of all modern computing.

Inside the Machine, from the co-founder of the highly respected Ars Technica website, explains how microprocessors operate-what they do and how they do it. The book uses analogies, full-color diagrams, and clear language to convey the ideas that form the basis of modern computing. After discussing computers in the abstract, the book examines specific microprocessors from Intel, IBM, and Motorola, from the original models up through today's leading processors. It contains the most comprehensive and up-to-date information available (online or in print) on Intel's latest processors: the Pentium M, Core, and Core 2 Duo. Inside the Machine also explains technology terms and concepts that readers often hear but may not fully understand, such as "pipelining," "L1 cache," "main memory," "superscalar processing," and "out-of-order execution."

Includes discussion of:

* Parts of the computer and microprocessor
* Programming fundamentals (arithmetic instructions, memory accesses, control flow instructions, and data types)
* Intermediate and advanced microprocessor concepts (branch prediction and speculative execution)
* Intermediate and advanced computing concepts (instruction set architectures, RISC and CISC, the memory hierarchy, and encoding and decoding machine language instructions)
* 64-bit computing vs. 32-bit computing
* Caching and performance

Inside the Machine is perfect for students of science and engineering, IT and business professionals, and the growing community of hardware tinkerers who like to dig into the guts of their machines.

Ratings and reviews

This book covers processor architecture and its development over the past thirty years. Where this book shines is the author's focus on the important notes for architectures, without getting mired down in the fab and gate details that most books do; it was a fun read, and provided a great base of underlying computing knowledge. Everyone who wants to have a fundamental understanding of computing must read this book. It combines great coverage of how each component works, and how each CPU design is focused on different core components of CPU design, for vastly different reasons. It's specific enough to talk about micro-ops, pipelines, integer, floating point and vector calculations, as well as memory management and performance/heat issues and clock-speed versus instructions per clock debate. Required reading if you are a technologist, or are writing assembly. Did you know that the Pentium-M and Core architectures are based off the P6 (PIII) design?

Although the references are outdated, the information is still valid and relevant. It will help the reader understand some of the basic concepts of computer architecture and understanding the differences between various bidden designs.

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About the author

Jon "Hannibal" Stokes is co-founder of and Senior CPU Editor of Ars Technica. He has written for a variety of publications on microprocessor architecture and the technical aspects of personal computing. Stokes holds a degree in computer engineering from Louisiana State University and two advanced degrees in the humanities from Harvard. He is currently pursuing a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago.