ISA Instructions

Understanding ISA instruction categories

This is an easy computer architecture question that tests foundational knowledge of instruction set architecture (ISA) design. It asks you to distinguish between the major functional categories that make up a processor's instruction set—a core concept covered in depth in Inside the Machine and essential background for anyone working with low-level code or hardware-software interfaces.

To answer questions like this correctly, you need to be familiar with how instructions are classified by their purpose: arithmetic and logic operations, memory access, control flow, and other standard groupings. The question format—identifying what does not belong—is a reliable way to confirm you understand the taxonomy rather than just recognizing individual instruction names.

• Arithmetic and logical operations
• Load and store (memory access)
• Control flow and branching
• Floating-point instructions