Bare Metal JavaScript: The JavaScript Virtual Machine

• Understanding JavaScript's Performance Characteristics: Learn how JavaScript is converted into low-level CPU instructions, focusing on memory operations, inline caching, and deoptimization.
• Comprehending CPU Mechanics: Gain insight into how CPUs execute code, including the role of registers, the arithmetic logic unit, and the program counter.
• Exploring Virtual Machines: Develop a mental model of how virtual machines, like Google's V8 engine, optimize and execute JavaScript code efficiently.
• Analyzing JavaScript Performance: Use tools like the deopt explorer to inspect and optimize JavaScript code, focusing on object shapes, hidden classes, and inline caching.

The course delves into the inner workings of JavaScript virtual machines, providing a comprehensive understanding of how high-level JavaScript is executed at the machine level. Through examining the V8 engine's performance characteristics, learners will build a foundational understanding of how virtual machines interact with computer hardware. This course covers a range of topics, including CPU mechanics, optimization techniques, and the intricacies of JavaScript performance.

• Developers interested in low-level programming and performance optimization.
• JavaScript programmers seeking to deepen their understanding of how JavaScript engines work.
• Computer science students and professionals looking to explore virtual machines and CPU architecture.

• Basic knowledge of JavaScript programming.
• Familiarity with computer science concepts is beneficial but not required.

Introduction

• Overview of JavaScript virtual machines and their connection to physical hardware.

How the CPU Runs Code

• Physical & Virtual Machines: Role of virtual machines in code-CPU communication.
• CPU Basics & Speed Limits: Introduction to CPU components and performance enhancements.
• CPU Memory Management: Memory management techniques and operations.
• CPU Subroutines & Calling Conventions: Understanding subroutines and stack management.
• CPU Q&A: Discussion on hardware architecture and RAM in relation to JavaScript engines.

Fibonacci

• Transition from machine language to assembly language using Fibonacci sequence examples.

Virtual Machine Inlining & Deopt

• Optimizing Code: Balance between speed and memory in code optimization.
• Deopt Explorer & Fixing a Deopt: Using tools to analyze JavaScript performance.
• Object Shapes & Hidden Classes: Impact of object shapes on JavaScript performance.

Micro Benchmarking

• Object Shapes & Inline Caching: Analyzing inline caching's role in performance.
• Inspecting Inline Caches with Deopt Explorer: Using deopt explorer for performance insights.
• Double & Triple Equals: Examining performance differences between equality operators.
• Object & Array Copying: Performance considerations in object and array manipulations.
• Negative Numbers: Exploring the impact of negative zero on performance.
• Holey Arrays: Understanding performance challenges with arrays containing holes.

Amdahl’s Law

• Importance of optimizing significant code portions for overall performance.