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Professional Assembly Language [Paperback]

Richard Blum
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)

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Book Description

February 11, 2005 0764579010 978-0764579011
  • Unlike high-level languages such as Java and C++, assembly language is much closer to the machine code that actually runs computers; it's used to create programs or modules that are very fast and efficient, as well as in hacking exploits and reverse engineering
  • Covering assembly language in the Pentium microprocessor environment, this code-intensive guide shows programmers how to create stand-alone assembly language programs as well as how to incorporate assembly language libraries or routines into existing high-level applications
  • Demonstrates how to manipulate data, incorporate advanced functions and libraries, and maximize application performance
  • Examples use C as a high-level language, Linux as the development environment, and GNU tools for assembling, compiling, linking, and debugging

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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Professional Assembly Language

Every high level language program (such as C and C++) is converted by a compiler into assembly language before it is linked into an executable program. This book shows you how to view the assembly language code generated by the compiler and understand how it is created. With that knowledge you can tweak the assembly language code generated by the compiler or create your own assembly language routines.

This code-intensive guide is divided into three sections — basics of the assembly language program development environment, assembly language programming, and advanced assembly language techniques. It shows how to decipher the compiler-generated assembly language code, and how to make functions in your programs faster and more efficient to increase the performance of an application.

What you will learn from this book:

  • The benefits of examining the assembly language code generated from your high-level language program
  • How to create stand-alone assembly language programs for the Linux Pentium environment
  • Ways to incorporate advanced functions and libraries in assembly language programs
  • How to incorporate assembly language routines in your C and C++ applications
  • Ways to use Linux system calls in your assembly language programs
  • How to utilize Pentium MMX and SSE functions in your applications

About the Author

Richard Blum has worked for a large U.S. government organization for more than 15 years. During that time, he has had the opportunity to program utilities in various programming languages: C, C++, Java, and Microsoft VB.NET and C#. With this experience, Rich has often found the benefit of reviewing assembly language code generated by compilers and utilizing assembly language routines to speed up higher-level language programs.
Rich has a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Purdue University, where he worked on many assembly language projects. (Of course, this was back in the eight-bit processor days.) He also has a master of science degree in management from Purdue University, specializing in Management Information Systems.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 576 pages
  • Publisher: Wrox (February 11, 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0764579010
  • ISBN-13: 978-0764579011
  • Product Dimensions: 1.3 x 7.1 x 9.2 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #455,291 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

It covers a lot of ground and does it well. scott adams  |  7 reviewers made a similar statement
Just take a look at the table of contents and you will see what I mean. Arthur Moe  |  2 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
35 of 35 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Good at explaining the basics May 12, 2006
Format:Paperback
About the syntax used - yes,through all the book only the AT&T assembly syntax is used. The obvious reason is that most popular compiler on Linux is GCC, which has GAS (GNU Assembler) as the behind the scenes assembler invoked by GCC every time you compile your code. And native to GAS is the AT&T syntax and not the Intel syntax, which is deemed more readable.

Now to the book contents. As there is no previous knowledge of assembly assumed, the reader is first given a quite detailed view of the Intel processors architecture, including coverage of modern features like the Netburst design, present in modern Pentium series processors.Then basics of the tools of the trade are presented.

With this preliminary knowledge the reader is prepared to begin the major part of the book - the assembly language itself.

The learning curve is flattened as much as possible by the author, guiding us through all the major domains of assembly programming - working with processor registers, stack and heap manipulation, floating point arithmetic,handling various data types (strings, integers, floating point numbers) and more.

All the chapters contain stand alone code examples ready to be compiled and run. Most of the example code is 30-40 lines long and relates to the particular point being explained, i.e. there's no intentional cross-reference between code samples in different chapters.

Starting at the chapter 12, "Linux System Calls", begins what this book was written for - how to apply gathered so far knowledge to the real world.
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35 of 39 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars For the High Level Programmer Going Low Down February 11, 2005
Format:Paperback
Be aware that this book is very Intel oriented, specifically the 32 bit Intel Pentium family sometimes called X86 or more officially IA-32 (Intel Architecture - 32 Bit). If you're working on a Motorola, Sparc or any other architectured machine, go buy a different book.

Having said that, within the Intel world, this book is an excellent introduction on how the IA-32 architecture has developed over time. It is a good introduction to the basic concepts of assembly language programming. It's a fairly high level book, aimed at the programmer who works in C++ or something like that who might want to optimize his code or at least understand what the compiler did to him.

To go with the book, you probably want to go to the Intel web site and download the Software Developer Manuals for the processor you are using (it's about 12 meg for the Pentium 4) or you can order them on a CD. But start with this book, it provides a basis, a foundation that will make the Intel manuals a lot easier to get around.

Good book to start out with assemblers.
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Coverage of ATT (GNU) Assembly October 9, 2006
Format:Paperback
I recently had to port an assembly language program written in Microsoft assembly language (MASM) to Linux (GNU AS). This book saved alot of time by helping me to: (1) understand the differences between MASM & GNU AS, (2) efficiently compile a mixture of "C", inline assembly and pure assembly, and (3) use gdb to debug my port. Each chapter covers a topic in depth with numerous examples that include step-by-step walk throughs with gdb. Anyone who's interested in programming in assembly language on Linux will find this book a very useful reference and a great value. Highly recommended!
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39 of 47 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars Not for MS, and barely for Linux/Unix December 10, 2005
Format:Paperback
I have to take exception with the first 7 reviewers; while this book does have a few redeeming features, it is not a professional level assembly language book. First of all, if you are looking for a professional level assembly language book for operating systems other than Linux or Unix, this book is not for you. It uses AT&T syntax which is different from Intel syntax. If you are experienced, you will have little difficulty translating from one syntax to the other. If you are wanting to learn assembly language for MS OS's, this is not your book.

Blum uses Linux as his development plateform which sounds promising for those of us interested in learning how to use assembly language for Linux. However, he puts off using system calls until chapter 12. He shows one example of printing text on the screen then moves to using printf from the C library. The lack of coverage on system calls puts this book into the barely useful category.

What is useful is his coverage on the major instructions. And, you will get a good workout using the gdb debugger, as he depends upon that for input/output rather than show you how to write basic input/output routines. Linking with other libraries is also useful.

Since there are few books on assembly language for Linux, it is doubly disappointing in how far this book misses the mark. Every seasoned assembly language programmer knows that having a good reference to the OS's basic routines is fundamental. If I wanted to use C functions, I would write in C.
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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars One for the "real" world. February 23, 2006
Format:Paperback
I mean, if you are a computer science student, there's plenty of voluminous tomes on processor architecture, algorithms and Assembly language. But I'm not a student; I do recognise the value of understanding in detail the nuts and bolts of how processors work, but I don't need to know that right now (and I suspect that I just might not have enough grey matter to ever fully comprehend it); I don't want to learn yet another hybridised Assembly/3GL language, I already know C, and (to paraphrase the furry blue guy) that's "good enough for me"; I want to see examples I can apply immediately to my day job; and I would like to learn more about the development environment, too.

Finally, it appears that my long search is over. This book is an excellent "how-to" for experienced programmers who want to enhance their applications with inline Assembly, for occasional coders who need access to specific machine instructions (why, I have no idea, but I'm sure you're out there somewhere), and for security analysts who need some assistance understanding shellcode. However, I think this book will be of enormous benefit for newcomers to programming and Assembly, as it shows in great detail how to develop and debug Assembly programs using the GNU gcc tools. It's one thing to learn instructions and algorithms; it's another entirely to go from an empty source file to a debugged and linked executable.

Don't be discouraged if you're strictly Microsoft; there are plenty of easy-to-use Linux distributions readily available for your pleasure. You can even remain true to Redmond by using a live CD distribution, such as Knoppix, to practise on, without ever having to install one of these nasty open source operating systems. Linux/BSD afficionados, of course, should feel right at home here.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Great reading so far
So, first, background so people know how I fit in. I'm a finance guy who has a CS background. Took Assembly a while ago...and promptly forgot. Read more
Published 4 months ago by S. Baker
4.0 out of 5 stars The Start of a Solid Foundation...
I purchased this book through Amazon a couple of years ago; I never really read the entire book until recently, so am only posting my review now. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Abdul Nabi
4.0 out of 5 stars The best book I could find to teach practical assembly language
I read Professional Assembly Language (PAL) by Richard Blum because I wanted to become somewhat familiar with assembly language. Read more
Published on October 10, 2010 by Richard Bejtlich
5.0 out of 5 stars A good book on assembly language.
I have long been looking for good information that is geared towards assembler in Linux as that is my preferred OS. I am happy to say that I am very satisfied with it. Read more
Published on September 16, 2009 by Arthur Moe
5.0 out of 5 stars It was just what I needed!
This is easy to read book and it was just what I needed. The author examines assembly language from linux perspective. Read more
Published on June 25, 2009 by Plamen Lyud Valov
5.0 out of 5 stars A great book to learn IA-32 assembly
This is a GREAT book for learning x86 IA-32 assembly, very well written by one who knows the magic. The contents are easy to understand and the examples are ready to compile and... Read more
Published on May 18, 2009 by J. He
5.0 out of 5 stars Must Read
This book is a must read for anyone who wants a good introduction to Assembler. The structure of the book is excellent. Read more
Published on February 7, 2009 by Gregory J. Meagher
5.0 out of 5 stars Helped me
If you are looking to learn assembly programming for the Linux os, I think you would do well to have this book.
Best book on Linux assembly I've found. Read more
Published on June 29, 2008 by scott adams
3.0 out of 5 stars Critical mistakes, bad for reference
Although this book is mostly ok, there are two main problems: 1) it makes mistakes critical to the understanding of the material, 2) it is terrible for reference. Read more
Published on August 2, 2007 by Philip G. Lee
2.0 out of 5 stars programmer_in_santamonica
This book should not carry the word Professional in the title - it is basic - very basic at best. This book is all about the Intel architecture - e.g. Intel processors. Read more
Published on May 10, 2007 by Roy Fine
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