In this issue we’re going deep - with a couple of articles that explore the WebAssembly instruction set in more detail …

Writing WebAssembly by Hand

SCOTTLOGIC.COM

WebAssembly was designed as a compilation target / runtime for a wide range of higher-level programming languages. However, it is surprisingly easy to write by hand! This blog post explores the WAT text format and looks at implementing Conway’s Game of Life.

How does Dynamic Dispatch work in WebAssembly?

FITZGERALDNICK.COM

Dynamic dispatch is a technique that allows language to dynamically determine which implementation of an operation to invoke at runtime. It is a feature of most programming languages, although they differ in exactly how it is implemented.

This post explores the WebAssembly call_indirect instruction, which allows dynamic invocation of functions. It also compares how the same dynamic code (written in Rust) differs when compiled to WebAssembly and x86. Fascinating stuff!

And The Rest …

And Finally …

What if there were a physical CPU that executed WebAssembly? 😱😱😱