Bytecode

Bytecode is a compact instruction representation executed by a virtual machine or interpreter, often produced by compiling a higher-level programming language. It separates a program’s compiled form from the machine instructions of a particular processor.

Compiler: A program that translates source code into another representation, such as machine code or bytecode. A compiler commonly translates source code into bytecode before execution.
Java bytecode: The instruction format executed by the Java Virtual Machine. It is a prominent example of bytecode designed for execution across platforms.
Source code: Human-readable program text written in a programming language. Bytecode is often generated from source code by a compiler.
Ahead-of-time compilation: Compilation performed before a program runs, commonly producing native machine code. It avoids relying on bytecode interpretation during program execution.
Virtual machine: A software implementation of a computing environment that executes programs or emulates a machine. A virtual machine supplies the execution environment for many bytecode formats.
WebAssembly: A portable binary instruction format designed for execution in web browsers and other environments. It brings compact, validated bytecode to browsers and standalone runtimes.
Machine code: Binary instructions encoded for direct execution by a particular processor architecture. Unlike processor-specific machine code, bytecode typically targets a virtual machine.
Interpretation: Execution of program instructions by another program rather than direct processor execution. Bytecode is frequently interpreted, though bytecode itself is a representation, not an execution method.
Bytecode interpreter: A program that executes bytecode by decoding and carrying out its instructions. An interpreter can execute bytecode one instruction at a time.
.NET Common Intermediate Language: The instruction set used by the .NET Common Language Infrastructure for managed programs. It lets multiple .NET languages compile to a shared intermediate format.

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