Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

dthain.github.io

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

1–10 of 58 posts

Re: Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

#3

Post by jdw64 »

Sometimes I see people who design languages and build compilers, and I find them truly amazing. I once tried making a language myself because I was curious, but it was so difficult that I just settled for a simple C backend. The people contributing to LLVM probably know everything down to assembly generation. they're truly incredible.

Re: Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

#5

Post by shuyang »

Took Dr. Thain's compilers class in college! It was the best. He's an excellent instructor, and the course project made me build a working C-style compiler step by step. I think the sample project here is pretty much the project we did; highly recommend following through the entire thing!

Re: Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

#6

Post by t-3 »

jdw64 wrote: post #3

Sometimes I see people who design languages and build compilers, and I find them truly amazing. I once tried making a language myself because I was curious, but it was so difficult that I just settled for a simple C backend. The people contributing to LLVM probably know everything down to assembly generation. they're truly incredible.

Assembly generation is actually pretty simple, it's optimizing everything that's difficult. Writing an assembler is a great way to get acquainted with compiler construction, because you don't need to think about optimization and types and the other features that make high level languages complicated aren't needed.

Re: Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

#7

Post by jdw64 »

t-3 wrote: post #6
jdw64 wrote: post #3

Sometimes I see people who design languages and build compilers, and I find them truly amazing. I once tried making a language myself because I was curious, but it was so difficult that I just settled for a simple C backend. The people contributing to LLVM probably know everything down to assembly generation. they're truly incredible.

Assembly generation is actually pretty simple, it's optimizing everything that's difficult. Writing an assembler is a great way to get acquainted with compiler construction, because you don't need to think about optimization and types and the other features that make high level languages complicated aren't needed.

I keep saying 'someday...' and never actually doing it because of making a living, but this time I think I should try a few small examples

Re: Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

#9

Post by giancarlostoro »

madrajib wrote: post #2

Love such topics and articles in midst of AI topics/noise.

The best part of the blind AI hatred is you can call literally anything AI slop without presenting evidence and the anti-slop loyalists will hate it without any evidence.

I do value both correct high quality AI usage and non-AI works, would be nice if we could have a bar for the AI stuff that makes sense instead of dismissing peoples work blindly.

Re: Introduction to Compilers and Language Design (2021)

#10

Post by solumunus »

giancarlostoro wrote: post #9
madrajib wrote: post #2

Love such topics and articles in midst of AI topics/noise.

The best part of the blind AI hatred is you can call literally anything AI slop without presenting evidence and the anti-slop loyalists will hate it without any evidence. I do value both correct high quality AI usage and non-AI works, would be nice if we could have a bar for the AI stuff that makes sense instead of dismissing peoples work blindly.

I guarantee half the folk commenting “ai slop” on people’s projects are folk who never read people’s code even before AI. Now they get to dismiss it without providing any specifics and feel superior.
Post reply on HN