Which of the following best describes Direct addressing?

Direct addressing refers to the method of accessing memory by specifying the exact memory address in the instruction. When a program utilizes direct addressing, the operand contains the memory address of the data the operation needs to work with. This allows for straightforward data retrieval or storage since the processor can go directly to the designated location in memory.

In programming and computer architecture, this is a common and efficient way to manage variables and data, as it reduces the overhead associated with indirect methods that require additional steps to locate the memory. This contrasts with other addressing modes, such as indirect addressing, where a pointer or variable holds the address of the data, or accessing constant values, which involves different types of access patterns. Overall, direct addressing is characterized by its simplicity and efficiency in accessing data, which makes option A the most accurate description of this addressing mode.