A base address is a starting point used by computer programs to locate hardware components or process certain functions. It can be assigned to devices and referenced in a sequence of commands. Relative addresses use the reference address, while absolute addresses are equivalent to it. 32-bit systems usually have fixed address sequences, but 16-bit and 32-bit programs may require manual assignment of a reference address.
A base address is used by computer programs to identify a source location or starting point. It may be the first set of instructions in a series of programming commands. A base address is sometimes used to indicate the locations of specific hardware components, such as a printer or external storage disk.
Computers use different addressing schemes to process and complete certain functions. Devices can be assigned addresses that use a base address as a reference. For example, an external drive may be assigned an address of two since that is the second place the program can locate data. The address would include not only the number two, but also the base address, which can be as simple as a series of zeros. Computer memory uses address patterns to identify the locations of peripheral devices, internal random access memory, and reserved space on the hard drive.
The idea of a base address can be thought of as a sequence. It’s a signal or code for the computer and its programs to operate in a certain way. For example, a word processing program might first attempt to communicate with a printer before sending a document to its queue. The base address or reference for this set of instructions would be assigned to some sort of command requiring a communication test.
After your word processing application determines that the printer is on and capable of receiving communications, it moves on to the next step. The application would recognize that sending the document to the print queue is the next step since the base address plus two is assigned to that particular command function. After the completion of the second step, the program would refer to the same base or reference address in the third command.
Relative addresses are all address assignments that use the reference address. The absolute address is equivalent to the reference or starting point. 16- and 32-bit processors already have a fixed address sequence and usually do not require manual entry of a reference address. XNUMX-bit computing systems, however, will do.
Regardless of where the reference address is in a computer’s memory scheme, it will almost always start with an assignment of zero or one. Sometimes letters are used to assign a base address, but usually they are done repetitively or synchronously. Many 32-bit programs require manual assignment and creation of a reference address or starting point.
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