Java Virtual Machine

ALSO CALLED: Java Virtual Machine (Software), JVM
DEFINITION: A Java virtual machine (JVM), an implementation of the Java Virtual Machine Specification, interprets compiled Java binary code (called bytecode) for a computer's processor (or "hardware platform") so that it can perform a Java program's instructions. Java was designed to allow application programs to be built that could be run on any platform without having to be rewritten or recompiled by the programmer  … 
Definition continues below.

JAVA VIRTUAL MACHINE DEFINITION (continued): …  for each separate platform. A Java virtual machine makes this possible because it is aware of the specific instruction lengths and other particularities of the platform. The Java Virtual Machine Specification defines an abstract -- rather than a real -- machine or processor. The Specification specifies an instruction set, a set of registers, a stack, a "garbage heap," and a method area. Once a Java virtual machine has been implemented for a given platform, any Java program (which, after compilation, is called bytecode) can run on that platform. A Java virtual machine can either interpret the … 
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