A86 (software)

A86 is an <a href="/facts/Assembler_(computing)/7XuV0cla">assembler</a> for <a href="/facts/MS-DOS/fVrrz1uN">MS-DOS</a> which generates 16-bit code for the <a href="/facts/Intel/SMF0gJJX">Intel</a> <a href="/facts/X86/Kypq5fgu">x86</a> family of <a href="/facts/Microprocessor/Fx9CaQht">microprocessors</a>. Written by Eric Isaacson, it released as <a href="/facts/Shareware/TAhIvJXt">shareware</a> in June 1986. The assembler is contained in one 32K executable and can directly produce a <a href="/facts/COM_file/3SXSyIxa">COM file</a> or an <a href="/facts/Object_file/sFBvosE4">object file</a> for use with a standard <a href="/facts/Linker_(computing)/pn1hztYe">linker</a>. It comes with a <a href="/facts/Debugger/mCe6UsWj">debugger</a>, D86. Speed of assembly is a primary selling point, and Isaacson claimed that A86 could assemble 100,000 lines of source per second on a <a href="/facts/Pentium_II/VoHQLV1s">Pentium II</a> or better. Isaacson added <a href="/facts/32-bit/TDMVce8s">32-bit</a> support in the mid 1990s in the form of A386 and D386. These were not distributed as shareware, but were provided to users who registered A86. 
While supporting expected x86 syntax, A86 and A386 do not require <a href="/facts/Directive_(programming)/RsozxGG0">directives</a>, such as ASSUME, SEGMENT, and PROC, which <a href="/facts/Microsoft_Macro_Assembler/7WavMJEo">Microsoft Macro Assembler</a> and other contemporaries rely on. A86 and A386 have a custom syntax for macros and local labels which is incompatible with other assemblers. There are also a variety of syntactical tweaks allowing more concise source code.
The A86 family of products was never ported to <a href="/facts/Microsoft_Windows/bwhAhuSL">Microsoft Windows</a>, but it is possible to use the <a href="/facts/Object_files/sFBvosE4">object files</a> created by A386 with a Windows linker. The assembler does not support <a href="/facts/64-bit/AgvkQHkM">64-bit</a> code.

A86 (software) open-in-new

A86 (software)