The role of compilers

Compilers translate human-readable code written in a programming language (the source language) into another language, usually a machine-specific language, though this can be a virtual machine. They translate code from a high-level language to a lower-level one. They can generate intermediate code, assembly languages, object code, or machine code. They also play an essential role in speeding up software runtime. Compilers keep getting smarter by improving the abstraction of what developers wanted to express with efficient execution in hardware. New programming paradigms were added to improve software engineering. In the 1990s, Python and Java made object-oriented programming available to everyone. We recommend that the reader check out the book Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools, also known as the Dragon Book, written by Aho, Lam, Sethi, and Ullman. This book will explain in depth how compilers are designed.

In HFT systems, the compilers can help...