Assembly language

Assembly language is not a proper "programming language" per se, but rather a tool that allows you to write machine code using short, semi-human readable instructions, rather than having to write streams of ones and zeroes.

A list of OS/2 assemblers

• GNU Assembler - Open source - Discontinued
• IBM ALP Assembler - Commercial - Discontinued
• JWasm - Open Source - Current
• Microsoft Assembler - Commercial - Discontinued
• NASM Assembler - Open Source/LGPL - Current
• Wasm - Open Source - Current
• TopSpeed TechKit - Commercial - Discontinued
• Turbo Assembler - Commercial - Discontinued

OS/2 disassemblers

• AVR Disassembler - AVR - Open Source - Current.
• BeaEngine - i86/AMD64 - Open Source - Current.
• DISA - i86 - Freeware - Discontinued
• IDA - i86/AMD64 - Shareware/Commercial - Discontinued
• PIC Disassembler - PIC - Open Source - Current.

Aids

• FWKTL - allows OS/2 to run COM like self modifying code

OS/2 text & programmers editors with assembly language support

• Boxer - x86 and AT&T DSP32SL (Included by default) - Microchip 16C715, Mitsubishi 37451, PL/M-51 and 8051 (Contributed, requires download) - Commercial - Discontinued

A list of DOS assemblers

• Microsoft Assembler - Commercial - Discontinued

DOS disassemblers

• PICDIS-LITE - PIC - Shareware - Current.

DOS text & programmers editors with assembly language support

• Boxer - x86 and AT&T DSP32SL (Included by default) - Microchip 16C715, Mitsubishi 37451, PL/M-51 and 8051 (Contributed, requires download) - Commercial - Discontinued

Publications

Tutorials and other learning material

• Working in Protected Mode - A tutorial for DOS programmers, but helpful for OS/2 newbies to a degree.

Links

• Sandpile.org - Lots of info on i86 and AMD64 instructions.
• The Art of Assembly Language Programming - An often referenced 80x86 Asm on-line tutorial and reference, note though that the examples are in a HLA format, a specific type of assembly not available for an OS/2 toolset.

Mailing lists & forums

• Assembly Language Programming - On Yahoo groups - very low volume list but with a large group of subscribers so it can kick into life unexpectedly.

USENET

• comp.lang.asm.x86 - Go to the Google groups version if you or your ISP are in any way newsgroup challenged.

Standards

Unlike most other languages the assembly language is not an artificial language that requires standardisation but rather an implementation of a practical reality that came into existence when a specific CPU was designed and manufactured, so the standard is the actual documentation of a hardware implementation. That means for 8, 16 and 32 bit processors the "standard" are the processor and programming manuals from Intel while for 64 bit assembly language you need to look towards similar manuals from AMD.