Intelligent Firmware Ltd: CPL32/ASM32 multi pass no-red tape assembler

Intelligent Firmware's multipass CPL32 is the best assembler for true, pure assembly programmers. Purpose built for 32 bit protected mode programming (supports also 16 bit) and for embedded systems (ROM) programming. The most important feature of CPL32 is that it is a real assembler, not a high level language C like assembler like most. With CPL32 you write assembly, not some high level language, so there is absolutely NO RED TAPE, you do NOT declare variable types, segments or procedures. That's why we built ASM32 and the next generation CPL32 because we couldn't manage any more with traditional C like assemblers on our huge assembly only projects, like MASM/TASM or even A386.

Short example:

As you see, except the standart "BEGIN 100h" for generating a .COM file, nothing else is needed. All the red tape is not needed for pure assembly, it's needed for TASM/MASM.

CPL32's improvements

From our vast assembly programming experience we concluded that the main cause of assembly's increased programming effort compared to medium/high level languages are the calculations, therefore we added some simple optional compiler instructions. (Assuming of course that one knows very well to program assembly.)

EXAMPLE:	high level	assembly	CPL32
Average	av=(a+b+c)/3	MOV AX,[var_a] ADD AX,[var_b] ADD AX,[var_c] MOV CX,3 XOR DX,DX DIV CX	LET AX=(W[var_a]+W[var_b]+W[var_c])/3
Circular buffer	warning=(outp-inp)<(max+20)	MOV AX,[outp] SUB AX,[inp] MOV BX,[max] ADD BX,20 CMP AX,BX SETL B[warning]	LET B[warning]=W[outp]-W[inp]<W[max]+20
If	If warning=0 and buffer(outp-max)=en	CMP B[warning],0 JNZ N1 MOV BX,[outp] SUB BX,[max] MOV DL,[en] CMP B[BX+buffer],DL JNZ N1	IF (B[warning]=0) and (B[buffer+W[outp]- -W[max]]=B[en])

LET regmem = expression : Set <register/memory> to value of <expression>
IF expression =,<>,>,=>,<,<=; expression : As simple IF <flag> but instead of a flag it uses 2 full expressions.
REPEAT expression : Repeats following {...} <expression> times.Repeats can be nested.
MOVS B/W/D,source,dest,len : Moves <len> expression times <Bytes/Words/Doubles> from <source> expression's address to <dest> expression's address. This is an very easy way to make those difficult in buffer scrolls. Note: Direction has to be preset.
CMPS B/W/D,source,dest,len : Similar to MOVS but comparing.
STOS B/W/D,dest,len,data : Stores <data> expression as <B/W/D> for <len> expression's times to <dest> expression's address.
SCAS B/W/D,dest,len,data : Similar to STOS but searching.
PRINT b0,...,bx: <bx>=data bytes or strings ("abc"). Generates an INT 38h followed by the data bytes, followed by the "EN" label. This is very useful, but in order for it to work, you need to build the service routine for INT 38h which will take the bytes and prints them, until it reaches EN.
CREGS reg,...,reg:Declares 1 or more registers as available for compiler's use. Always compiler instructions require some registers to use. Default is (E)AX,(E)DX. When a register is declared as compiler available, that means that whenever a compiler instruction is used, this register will get overwritten. But you are still allowed to use a compiler register for source or destination of compiler instructions.
SIGNED : Following compiler instructions will use signed arithmetic.
UNSIGNED : Following compiler instructions will use unsigned arithmetic.
COMPDATA : Uses about 36 bytes of memory for compiler instruction use. Should be put once at the start of the program.

CPL32 & ASM32

Short example:

CPL32's improvements