What is "bytecode" used for in computing?

Bytecode is an intermediate representation of code that is generated when source code is compiled. It is specifically designed to be executed by a virtual machine, which translates the bytecode into machine code that can be run on a specific hardware platform. This intermediate format allows for greater portability, as the same bytecode can be run on any machine that has the appropriate virtual machine without needing to be recompiled for each platform.

Using bytecode enables features like just-in-time (JIT) compilation, which improves performance by compiling bytecode to native machine code at runtime. This is commonly seen in languages like Java, where the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) executes the compiled bytecode, allowing Java applications to run on various devices and operating systems without modification.

The other choices refer to different computing concepts: algorithms for data sorting pertain to organizing data, programming languages for hardware control relate to low-level programming, and methods for data encryption involve securing information rather than execution processes.