Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!lll-winken!lll-lcc!ames!sgi!decwrl!spar!freeman
From: freeman@spar.SPAR.SLB.COM (Jay Freeman)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: self-modifying code
Message-ID: <815@spar.SPAR.SLB.COM>
Date: 19 Feb 88 23:33:47 GMT
References: <486@taux01.UUCP> <666@cresswell.quintus.UUCP>
Reply-To: freeman@spar.UUCP (Jay Freeman)
Organization: SPAR - Schlumberger Palo Alto Research
Lines: 11

In article <666@cresswell.quintus.UUCP> ok@quintus.UUCP (Richard A. O'Keefe) writes:

>What languages like Pop-2, Lisp, Prolog, SmallTalk, &c &c require is the
>ability to 
>(a) dynamically add *new* code;  if the operating system provided a
>    "load this .obj file whereever you please and protect it as
>    executable code, but tell me where you put everything" facility,

Not quite:  Occasionally one wants to be able to compile directly to
memory without bothering to write an object file; the loader would not
be called in such a case.  The objective is to be able to write some
bits into memory and then call or jump to what you just wrote.