Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1960. / Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 57).

The submitted work consists of a collection of publications arising from research carried out at Rhodes University (1970-1980) and at Heriot-Watt University (1980-1992). The theme of this research is the process of program development, i.e. the process of creating a computer program to solve some particular problem. The papers presented cover a number of different topics which relate to this process, viz. (a) Programming methodology programming. (b) Properties of programming languages. aspects of structured. (c) Formal specification of programming languages. (d) Compiler techniques. (e) Declarative programming languages. (f) Program development aids. (g) Automatic program generation. (h) Databases. (i) Algorithms and applications.

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Exception handling is a crucial aspect of practical programming, particularly in systems allowing logical concurrency such as multi-process distributed systems. First, a survey of existing exception handling mechanisms in operating systems is performed, which shows a diversity of implementations, depending on the process model and the method of inter-process communication. The thesis then develops a model for designing software which exploits the different mechanisms for handling normal and exceptional events. The model is applicable in many multi-process programming environments, and not only preserves modularity, but also enhances efficiency and reliability, while often increasing concurrency. To derive such a model, exceptions in multi-process software are classified primarily according to the program level at which they are detected and handled. Server-to-client exceptions are of particular interest because of their ubiquity; these are exceptions detected by a server and handled by a client. The model treats systems programs as event driven, and proposes dividing the events into normal or exceptional, according to the cost and mechanisms for handling them. Techniques are described for designing software according to three criteria: minimising the average run-time, minimising the exception processing time, and incrementally increasing the program's functionality. Many examples are given which illustrate the use of the general model. Program paradigms in several languages and in several systems are introduced to model features which are system dependent, through illustrative examples for asynchronous i/o multiplexing, and for exception notification from a server to its client or clients. Finally, some programs which have been implemented according to the rules of the model are described and compared with their more conventional counterparts. These programs illustrate the practicality and usefulness of the model for diverse systems and concurrent environments. / Science, Faculty of / Computer Science, Department of / Graduate

The implementation of a unified facility for program development and maintenance is described. The prototype (named "Eighty-One") provides for the entry, editing and compilation of program text within a unified system in which source text is immediately transformed into an intermediate tree structured representation for storage. The implications of the unification of these facilities under this representation are discussed from the viewpoints of user convenience and system efficiency. Technical problems posed by the implementation are also discussed. Finally, some comments are made upon the nature of the user interface to systems of this type. / Science, Faculty of / Computer Science, Department of / Graduate

Program manipulation is defined as the automated or semi-automated tailoring, modification or transformation of software to achieve programs with improved performance or other characteristics or to adapt programs to alternative uses. Program manipulation programs (and other sorts of software tool as well) are characterized as "programs about programs" or meta-programs. It is proposed that the implementation of these meta-programs be aided by a new type of meta-tool, the meta-programming system, which is characterized by its systematic treatment of programs as data objects. In support of the meta-programming system concept, a grammar-based scheme (called GRAMPS) for specifying meta-programming systems is put forward. This scheme is illustrated in its particular application to the programming language Pascal (yielding a specification for the meta-programming system Pascal MPS). The suitability of GRAMPS-based systems for implementing meta-programs is evaluated through theoretical consideration of the properties of GRAMPS systems in general, and an analysis of programming experiments using Pascal MPS in particular. The use of meta-programming systems for program manipulation tasks is analysed with respect to several application areas. Meta-programming systems are compared with various alternatives for the implementation of program transformations. Several types of programming utility are discussed including the use of meta-programs to develop versions of target programs specialized for program analysis. The use of meta-programming systems in the implementation of syntactic editors and integrated program manipulation systems is also considered. The results presented support both the GRAMPS scheme itself and the grammar-based treatment of programs as data objects in general. From a theoretical viewpoint, GRAMPS was found to have four important completeness properties. From an experimental perspective, Pascal MPS was found to be generally convenient and practical for large-scale applications. In each of the application areas considered, the meta-programming system approach compared favorably with available alternatives. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Electrical and Computer Engineering, Department of / Graduate

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