Homework 1

As you are aware, we have lab assignments due every week. We also will have several homework assignments this semester, and this is the first. While the labs are directed, the homework assignments present larger problems that you should break down into smaller problems. You should spend some time thinking about and planning your homework solutions before coding them.

Program Description

In this assignment, you are to create an assembly language program to compute the sum for a list of 3 numbers which are internally defined in the data segment of your program. The 3 numbers should actually be characters: use the last 3 digits of your student ID number.

Store the digits as a character string, e.g. "123".

Have your program print "Digits: " followed by the digits, and a new-line character, then "the sum of the values is " followed by the sum (an integer value) and another new-line character.

For example, the digits "123" should have a sum of 6.

For this assignment, you do not have to validate the input. That is, your program should work with any 3 character sequence, such as "abc" or ",(Q". As the saying goes, "garbage in, garbage out".

Notes:

• Your solution must compile with "nasm" on the SNOWBALL server. You may find that lab 4 is helpful.
• If your result is too large, it likely means that you need to account for the fact that the digits are stored as in ASCII.
• The digits "000" are valid, as are "999" and everything in between.
• The program should work for any list of 3 digits.
• You can assume that there are exactly 3 digits.
• You may need to define other variables in the data segment to produce the output.
• Yes, this could be done with a loop, however, you are not required to use a loop for this.
• You may be asked to meet with your TA to demonstrate your solution.
• Follow the instructions for the labs and Homework/Lab Pointers for turning in your work.
• Name your source file "hmwkY_XX.asm" and store it in your directory on the class server (SNOWBALL). Replace "XX" with whatever corresponds to your account, and Y should be replaced with the appropriate number.
• As you are aware certain types of assistance are inappropriate in this class. Read the collaboration policy given to you at the beginning of the semester, if you have any questions.
• Update: there was a question in class about what working with any 3 character sequence means when you are supposed to use last 3 digits of your student ID number. The input for this assignment is hard-coded, mainly because we have not covered file input yet. Also, validating input means using conditional logic, which we cover soon. Your solution should be general enough that if we change the hard-coded digits, it should still work, even if the result does not make sense, such as a negative result.