Standard way to supply hints to branches

[Dukc]

Walter Bright kirjoitti 24.8.2024 klo 6.37:
> It's not pedantically correct. More precisely, any code following the 
> `if` is presumed to be the hot path. A branch instruction doesn't count, 
> i.e. it's the branch-not-taken that is considered the hot path.
Can you elaborate? I'm not sure what's the difference between `if` and a 
branch instruction.