Tuning the hardware via a high level language (ALGOL)

Abstract

This paper will discuss how the computer may be tailored to the problem it is solving while still programming the problem in a higher level language. The vehicle to illustrate the technique is the "Stack machine," which is a virtual machine implemented in firmware on a Burroughs microprocessor. The "Stack machine" was designed to compile and execute programs written in Algol. Since, the microprogram memory of the microprocessor is read/write, the stack machine can be extended by special purpose firmware operators designed for a particular application program. This system permits jobs to be programmed and debugged in Algol, and then fine tuned to run at a much greater speed. This paper describes the stack machine, the methods used to fine tune a program, and some sample results of fine tuning.