Compiling C to printable x86, to make an executable research paper

(Summary via Kagi)

The video describes how the author created a research paper that is also an executable program by compiling C code to printable x86 assembly instructions. This required solving puzzles like simulating non-printable operations using printable ones and loading constants into registers. The author created a compiler that transforms C code into the printable x86 code. The resulting paper is 420 kilobytes large due to using printable bytes for the header. The author used I/O ports to play music from an AdLib sound card, demonstrating that the paper is an executable program by playing Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up”.