Patent ID: 8732430

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for using unused bits in a memory pointer, comprising: when loading a program to be executed, determining a set of address bits in the memory pointer that are not needed for addressing during program operation by using a program loader to: determine an amount of memory available to the program; predict an amount of virtual address space needed by the program; determine how many bits are available in the memory pointer based on the determined available memory and the predicted virtual address space set up an address space and runtime environment based on the bits available in the memory pointer; storing data associated with the memory pointer in the set of address bits, wherein the stored data comprises data associated with an object that the memory pointer points to; and masking the set of address bits when using the memory pointer to access a memory address; wherein accessing the stored data from the set of address bits facilitates reducing the number of memory accesses needed to access object data.