Introduction

MIPS (Microprocessor without Interlocked Pipeline Stages) is a RISC (Reduced Instruction Set Computing) architecture that is widely used in academic settings and embedded systems. Understanding MIPS assembly language provides a solid foundation for learning other RISC architectures and assembly languages.

Key Concepts

MIPS Architecture Overview

Registers: MIPS has 32 general-purpose registers, each 32 bits wide.
Memory: MIPS uses a byte-addressable memory model.
Instruction Set: MIPS instructions are fixed at 32 bits in length.

MIPS Registers

$zero: Always contains the value 0.
$at: Reserved for assembler.
$v0-$v1: Used for function return values.
$a0-$a3: Used for function arguments.
$t0-$t9: Temporary registers.
$s0-$s7: Saved registers.
$k0-$k1: Reserved for the operating system.
$gp: Global pointer.
$sp: Stack pointer.
$fp: Frame pointer.
$ra: Return address.

Basic Syntax and Structure

Labels: Used to mark locations in code.
Instructions: Consist of an operation code (opcode) and operands.
Comments: Begin with a # and extend to the end of the line.

Writing Your First MIPS Program

Example: Hello World

.data
hello: .asciiz "Hello, World!"

.text
.globl main

main:
    li $v0, 4          # Load the system call code for print_string into $v0
    la $a0, hello      # Load the address of the string into $a0
    syscall            # Make the system call

    li $v0, 10         # Load the system call code for exit into $v0
    syscall            # Make the system call

Explanation

.data: Section for data declarations.
.text: Section for code.
.globl main: Declares main as a global symbol.
li: Load immediate value into a register.
la: Load address into a register.
syscall: Perform a system call.

Practical Exercises

Exercise 1: Simple Arithmetic

Write a MIPS program that adds two numbers and prints the result.

.data
num1: .word 5
num2: .word 10
result: .word 0

.text
.globl main

main:
    lw $t0, num1       # Load num1 into $t0
    lw $t1, num2       # Load num2 into $t1
    add $t2, $t0, $t1  # Add $t0 and $t1, store result in $t2
    sw $t2, result     # Store the result in memory

    li $v0, 1          # Load the system call code for print_int into $v0
    move $a0, $t2      # Move the result to $a0
    syscall            # Make the system call

    li $v0, 10         # Load the system call code for exit into $v0
    syscall            # Make the system call

Solution Explanation

lw: Load word from memory into a register.
add: Add two registers.
sw: Store word from a register into memory.
move: Copy value from one register to another.

Common Mistakes

Forgetting to declare .data and .text sections.
Incorrectly using register names.
Not using syscall correctly.

Summary

In this section, we covered the basics of MIPS assembly language, including the architecture, registers, and basic syntax. We also wrote a simple "Hello, World!" program and a program to perform basic arithmetic. Understanding these fundamentals is crucial for progressing to more advanced topics in MIPS assembly.

Next, we will explore more complex instructions and control flow mechanisms in MIPS assembly language.

MIPS Assembly Language

Introduction

Key Concepts

MIPS Architecture Overview

MIPS Registers

Basic Syntax and Structure

Writing Your First MIPS Program

Example: Hello World

Explanation

Practical Exercises

Exercise 1: Simple Arithmetic

Solution Explanation

Common Mistakes

Summary

Assembly Programming Course

Module 1: Introduction to Assembly Language

Module 2: Assembly Language Basics

Module 3: Data Representation and Instructions

Module 4: Control Flow

Module 5: Advanced Assembly Concepts

Module 6: Assembly for Different Architectures

Module 7: Practical Applications and Projects

Module 8: Final Project and Review