Learning how programming languages work

Question

I\'ve been programming for years (mainly Python), but I don\'t understand what happens behind the scenes when I compile or execute my code.

In the vein of a question I a

Answer 1

Whoa, this is a huge question with tons of written books all about this. I really doubt you will get a decent answer in SO about this. You need to get to your local book store or pick up a few comp sci classes.

To give you a quick intro:

• Compiler: A program that converts written code into instructions that are natively understood by the processor.
• Interpreter: A program that reads written code and, on-the-fly, translates and gives corresponding processor-native instructions.
• Managed code: Code that runs in a virtual machine, e.g. to give cross-platform compatibility (Java).
• Virtual machine: A program that emulates the behavior, or rather the API, of a full-blown computer environment. Among other things, this gives some security advantages and cross platform compatibility.