Acm Transactions on Architecture and Code Optimization Review

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(More customer reviews)This is a great time for computer architecture. A lot of factors have come together in the last decade. Traditional x86-style processors hit the wall, and people suddenly realized that GHz measurements say as much about processing power as RPMs do about an engine's horsepower. At the same time, alternative computing platforms started attracting attention: clusters, GPUs, reconfigurable computing on FPGAs, and lots more that aren't as well known. Then, EPIC, VLIW, SIMD, and wilder features became commonplace, making assembly-level programming even more infeasible, just at the time the need for software started to skyrocket.
All of this puts compilation squarely on center stage, as the engine that harnesses a wild processor's performance for developers' use. Processor designers know this, too, so pay increasing attention to building that processor that programs really need, squeezing more payload computations out of fewer watts.
This journal presents the most advanced research in that area where compiler optimizations and hardware optimizations trade off against each other. It addresses current needs and emerging technologies, and reports on analysis tools for exploring those technologies. This month, for example, one study analyzes performance of stack machines vs. registered ones, a topic of interest to Java programmers, whether they know it or not. Another paper takes a standard feature hidden inside of processors, the "bypass network" around the arithmetic unit, and exposes it to the the compiler as "virtual registers," resulting in simpler hardware, power reduction, and performance improvement. Caching, branch prediction, register arrays, memory management, parallelizing the compiler itself, code generation, system modeling - it's all fair game. And, if you're at the top of this game and want to stay there, it's the information you need. Don't be put off by the retail price quoted here. It's a lot lower for ACM members (if you're not a member, it's one more reason to join), and most journals are even lower for student members. A good research library probably has a few recent copies readily available. Take a look, and see if it will help you stay ahead.
-- wiredweird

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This journal centers on hardware, software, and computer architecture and code optimization research.Offers new developments and methods for architects, designers, hardware, and software developers.