articles+ search results

Applications Programming, Backlog, Applications Backlog, Prototype, Methods, Information Systems, System Design, and Models

A prototyping development method is presented here which has the potential to reduce the growing application development backlog. Prior research and our findings indicate that a prototyping process can assist in the efficient development of application systems by breaking a complex problem into several comprehensive parts. A state-transition model of the IS development process is presented and discussed. A two-prototype method is explained in the context of this model. Two projects are described which are typical of development efforts made by end users in a microcomputer environment and IS specialists in a mainframe environement. (Reprinted by Permission of Publisher.)

Software, Process Control, Real-Time System, Software Engineering, Application Development Software, Programming, Prototype, Requirements Analysis, and System Development

Large-scale software requires effective management for production. Such large-scale software consists of application software, a utility subsystem, and an operating system. Individual software factories require levels of abstraction in a design process which uses prototyping, reusing, and program generating systems. The first level is the requirements level which defines the external devices with which the software communicates. A capsulated form of a requirements description is shown. The data-function or design level is the transition, the definition of a user's needs and the establishment of the model. Program models are defined and implemented in the program level. Prototyping is done throughout the entire process for the first operational versions of software interfaces. Productivity and reliability are the most crucial factors in management of a software factory. In addition to the encapsulated format examples, numerous block diagrams illustrate software production and the rolling mill software production example.

Prototype, Specifications, Performance Specifications, Software Engineering, Program Development Techniques, and Comparative Study

There has been much discussion on the relative merits of the specification-driven approach to software development versus the prototyping approach. An experiment has been conducted to give some basis for comparison of the two approaches. Seven software teams developed the same application software product. Three used the prototyping approach, four the specifying approach. Results indicate that prototyping required less effort and less code for equivalent performance. Prototyped products were easier to learn and use but rated lower on functionality and robustness. Specified products were easier to integrate.

Software Engineering, Software Design, System Development, Requirements Analysis, Specifications, Methods, Software Maintenance, Software Metrics, and Software Quality

Software engineering seeks to devise techniques for software development. Software systems go through two principal phases: development, and operations and maintenance. The conventional design-scheme requires that a large amount of time be spent developing specifications. Alternative schemes, include rapid prototyping, the very high level language approach, and the reusability approach. The design phase includes the decomposition of the requirement specification into certain basic elements and partitioning the set of decomposed elements into modules. Current design methodologies include functional decomposition, the data-flow design, and the data-structure design. Software maintenance can be divided into three categories: perfective, adaptive, and corrective maintenance. Software quality assurance aims to optimize reliability, reusability, and efficiency. Tables, graphs, and diagrams illustrate many of the features of software engineering.

Programming, Programming Language, Software Engineering, Methods, and I/O Management

Responding to a letter from Robert Baber (Computer, June 1985, p. 112), a reader disagrees with the conclusion that I-O is a conceptual block which hampers software development and argues instead that it is the central concept of intelligible programs. Current programming languages are certainly inadequate, in that they confuse design with implementation. These separate concerns should be dealt with in separate languages, and separate prototyping notions for designer and user should be added. Thus interprocess communication is a vital concept, of which I-O is the simplest expression.

Computer aided design, interactive software, man-machine interaction, software prototyping, modeling, Electronic computers. Computer science, and QA75.5-76.95

Computer aided design (CAD) systems, or more generally interactive software, are today being developed for various application areas like VLSI-design, mechanical structure design, avionics design, cartographic design, architectual design, office automation, publishing, etc. Such tools are becoming more and more important in order to be productive and to be able to design quality products. One important part of CAD-software development is the man-machine interface (MMI) design.

Programming Language, Expert Systems, Software Design, Evaluation, System Design, Application Development Software, and Small-X (Program development software)

Small-X is a programming language designed for building expert systems that is not for the computer novice. A Small-X program consists of statements called rules. The language provides two key features that distinguish it from other languages: a set of pattern-matching and evaluation functions, and the automatic handling of control flow. Small-X also has good debug features that allow users to trace rules. The manual for Small-X is complete and well-written. The language serves as a tool for learning about expert systems and for prototyping trial applications, but it is not the most trustworthy of program development systems.

Programming Language, Programming, Scientific Research, and Mathematical Programming

We describe linear future semantics, an extension of linear history semantics as introduced by Francez, Lehmann, and Pnueli, and show how it can be used to add multiprocessing to languages given by standard continuation semantics. We then demonstrate how the resulting semantics can be implemented. The implementation uses functional abstractions and non-determinacy to represent the sets of answers in the semantics. We give an example, using a semantic prototyping system based on the language Scheme. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Programming Language, PROLOG, Compiler/decompiler, and Algorithm

The use of Prolog as a language offers advantages for describing succinctly most of the algorithms needed in prototyping and implementing compilers, or producing tools that facilitate the task of compiling. One approach in implementing compilers using Prolog consists of coupling actions to recursive descent parsers to produce syntax-trees, which are utilized in guiding the generation of assembly code. Prolog is not only used in parsing and compiling, but is a labor-saving device in prototyping and implementing many non-numerical algorithms which arise in compiling. Unification and nondeterminism as means to circumvent costly unnecessary features are also discussed. Other topics include: bottom-up and top-down parsers; syntax-directed translation; grammar properties; code generation; and newly proposed features for compiler construction.

Prototype, New Technique, Application Development Software, Object-Oriented Languages, Smalltalk (Computer program language), Software Design, and Software Engineering

The Smalltalk object-oriented programming language developed at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in the early 1970s offers a completely new environment for software development. Smalltalk is not easy to learn, even for programmers with experience in standard languages. Excellent references to Smalltalk are the Blue Book and the Orange Book: the Blue Book deals mainly with features of the language, while the Orange Book deals with the environment. Learning the language poses a short-term disadvantage, but the long-term gains in productivity may be worth the initial investment. Commercial versions of Smalltalk are available on workstations like the Tektronix 440X series, the Sun, and the IBM PC AT; implementations for the MicroVAX are under development.

System Development, Comparative Study, System Design, Design, Methods, Project Management Software, Requirements Analysis, Research and Development, and Prototype

This article presents a retrospective comparative study of the use of the system development life cycle (SDLC) and prototyping methods to help select a development approach for a given information systems (IS) project. The respondents were asked (a) to decide independently whether one of their recent IS projects was developed using either the SDLC or prototyping approach and if so, (b) to evaluate the merit of that approach in terms of ease of project management, project requirements, project characteristics, impact on decision making, and user and designer satisfaction. The results indicate: (1.) Design methods cannot be considered apart from project, environment and decision characteristics. (2.) A clear cut preference of one method over the other could not be established. Each method performed better in some areas that in others. (3.) A framework that can be used by a project director for selecting a design method to develop a system could be postulated. (Reprinted with permission of the publisher.)

Application Development Software, Prototype, and Programming

Logic programming has great potential for reducing the cost of software development. We argue that, with an appropriate programming methodology, a logic programming system provides a powerful tool for rapid software prototyping. It is sufficiently formal and high-level to allow reasoning about specifications, and it provides an immediate operational validation of the programmer's intuitions. The methodology is introduced by means of an example larger than those usually used to illustrate the advantages of logic programming. We start with an informal specification of a structure-editor, show how it is formalized into a directly executable prototype, and introduce guidelines for validating logic programming code as implemented in Prolog. The developed prototype can be used for a number of applications: syntax-directed editor, semantic network browser, etc. The editor is compact but readable, and is quite efficient. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Power Systems, Artificial Intelligence, and Energy Management

Designers of Energy Management Systems (EMS) use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to solve diagnosis and decision problems making EMS more useful. The use of AI in EMS is explained, and differences between knowledge-based expert systems and traditional numeric algorithm development are examined. The differences between expert systems and the numeric approach are illustrated with a relay fault diagnosis system, demonstrating both the traditional and rapid prototyping approaches to its development. AI implementation in EMS and potential AI applications to power system operations are explored.

Semantics, Programming Language, Graph Theory, Hardware Description Language, and Artificial Intelligence

Systems semantics is a concept which extends programming languages' denotational semantics into a semantics for describing arbitrary systems. The arbitrary systems include objects that are in no sense computations. Two classes of applications are discussed: unidirectional systems and nonunidirectional systems. A brief discussion is also included of implementation and rapid prototyping strategies in various system description environments.

Software Packages, Documentation, Text Processing Software, Technical Writing, User-Written Software, Electronic Publishing Industry, and Symbolics Inc.

Concordia is designed as a development environment for technical writers. From Symbolics, Concordia is an extension of Genera, the software development environment for Symbolics computers. Concordia has specialized support of the different phases of a document life cycle: writing, editing illustration, design, production, and maintenance. Concordia is part of the Symbolics documentation system, where the central component is the document database. It is a framework organizing the tasks and activities in the document life cycle, with three main subactivities: text editing, graphic editing, and previewing. Concordia provides a number of ways of looking at a document, including: seeing the reader's viewpoint (WYSIWYG), local hardcopy, preview, and final hardcopy. The approach has been particularly successful in the areas of fast prototyping, on-line delivery, quality enhancement, and maintenance.

Information Systems, Decision Support Software, Operations Research, Technology, New Technique, Maintenance, Support Services, Systems Analysis, and System Design

It is shown that systems maintenance activity in large information systems would benefit greatly if the process knowledge reflecting the teleology of a design could be captured. It could be used to anticipate the consequences of changing conditions or requirements. Representation and Maintenance of Process knowledge (REMAP) is a formalism that accumulates design process knowledge to manage systems evolution. REMAP acquires and maintains dependencies among the design decisions made during a prototyping process and learns general domain-specific design rules on which the dependencies are based. The knowledge is applicable to prototype refinement, systems maintenance, and the reuse of existing design or software fragments to construct similar ones with analogical reasoning techniques.

Prototype, New Technique, Utilization, Functional Capabilities, Computer-Aided Software Engineering, and Cost Benefit Analysis

Computer-aided software prototyping from specifications and reusable components is a viable strategy for improving programming productivity, and such a system is described. The system uses the powerful and easy-to-use PSDL prototype system description (specification) language and a set of software tools. PSDL provides a computational model that integrates dataflow, unified non-procedural controls, and timing. The tools include an execution support system, a rewrite system for reducing variations explicit from the specifications, a syntax-directed editor with graphics tools, a software base of reusable components, a design database, and a program design management system for organizing, retrieving, and effecting reusable components as well as controlling versions, alternates, and refinements of the software product.

ISDN, Simulation, Prototype, ISO, and Algorithm

Veda, a simulator software tool, may be used by designers for protocol modeling and verification. It can provide rapid prototypes of distributed algorithms, and describes them using Estelle, an ISO formal description technique. Uses for Veda include: ISDN specifications; radiotelephone protocols; switching designs; satellite protocols; and remote maintenance.

Software Engineering, Modeling, Methods, Real-Time System, Process Control, and Programming Language

A language model, the Abstract Interaction Tool (AIT), is introduced for the specification of the User Interface Management Systems. It offers a tree-like hierarchy of interaction objects. Each object can be considered as an abstract input device containing a syntax-like specification of the required input pattern. The hierarchy of specifications makes up a system of syntactical productions with multiple control. The interface to the physical interaction devices is represented by the terminal nodes of the AIT. Hierarchical output resource management is featured, and at the higher, more abstract level, the input-output is loosely coupled. Coupling becomes increasingly tight at the lower levels. AITs model the functions (what) required by the user at the upper levels, but at the lower levels, the way to accomplish them (how) is emphasized. Facilities exist for context-dependent and expertise levels. Links to application modes are provided in a special section in the AIT. AITs can be applied to graphics, process control, dialogue, and real-time systems. They can also define controlled production rules in knowledge-based systems and provide tools for the software engineering phases specification and prototyping.

Adaptability, Parallel Algorithms, Program Development Techniques, Concurrent Programming, and Tuning

To facilitate extensive experimentation with program prototypes, a programming system that supports rapid prototyping of parallel programs needs to provide high-level language primitives with which programs can be explicitly, statically, or dynamically tuned with respect to performance and reliability. Language primitives and an associated programming system for tuning are described and implemented. They have been tested with various parallel applications on workstations on a UNIX network.

Strategic Planning, System Development, Optimization, Tutorial, Software Engineering, Business Planning, and Software Design

Delaying commitment to a particular software design reduces several problems resulting from premature commitment including: lack of freedom for iterative design, increased maintenance costs, increased effects of bugs, and nonportability of software. Delaying commitment provides time to search for the most effective solution and increases the opportunity to recognize it. Tactics to delay commitment to a final design include: use of modular programming, choice of parameters appropriate to a problem, keeping the problem and solution as general as possible, retain options to choose a parallel program solution, do not use prototyping tools, use abstractions, and use interfaces.

Research and Development, System Design, System Development, Methods, Cost Benefit Analysis, Specifications, Modeling, Very-Large-Scale Integration, and AT&T Bell Laboratories Inc. -- Product development

AT&T Bell Laboratories has developed a flexible, easy-to-use system, Cones, for the automatic synthesis of gate-level standard cell, programmable logic array, and programmable logic device designs from behavioral designs written in C. Design goals or existing behavioral models are input to an interactive process of partitioning, simulation, and modeling to produce behavioral models with sufficient logic detail. Cones then implements general sequential logic from the models in PLA and standard cell architectures for VLSI devices or as PLDs for prototyping and low-volume production. Advantages of the strategy include: reduction in design errors, decrease in design effort and time, only limited knowledge of the implementation technology is required, design intent can be used at a higher level of abstraction, and designers can focus on device function.

Prototype, Programming Language, Language Analysis, New Technique, Scientific Research, Technology, Program Development Techniques, Language Translation, and Application Development Software

Languages are vital for computer-based problem solving for their ability to specify how to compute solutions as well as for understanding the solutions conceptually and describing them. Software technological advances center primarily on more sophisticated tools and models of computation: languages determine the computer's sophistication through such features as editors, compilers, and command interpreters. The importance of languages has motivated considerable research on language classification, characterization, and recognition. Translator construction remains a mystery of computer science, however, and the regular expressions, terminals, non-terminals, and grammars used by the translator writer to think are not represented well in the translators themselves. The uses and advantages of a language designed especially for describing and constructing translators is described.

Software Design, Prototype, New Technique, Modeling, and American Telephone and Telegraph Co. -- Product development

It has been observed that the challenge of improving software productivity and quality is not just to 'do the thing right' but to ' do the right thing right.' Doing the right thing means building products and services that meet real customer needs. Specification is the first step in deriving system design from an understanding of customer needs. Technology to support software specification can, therefore, provide productivity and quality benefits that accrue through the entire product life cycle. Prototyping is an approach to system design in which a model of the system is quickly built and iteratively refined so as to become increasingly realistic. Experience with the evolving prototype leads to an improved understanding of system functionality, dynamics, and performance so that the resulting products and services are known to match customer needs before they are built. This article describes two promising approaches -- software architecture modeling and application-oriented languages -- for improving software development productivity and quality through support for software specification and prototyping. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher)

Expert Systems, Artificial Intelligence, Simulation, Applications, and Control Equipment

A Petri net is a modelling tool used in the design and analysis of systems. The expert system language OPS5 has a similar execution strategy to a Petri net model, and hence Petri nets may be simulated using the OPS5 language. ESPNET has been designed to be used in a rapid prototyping mode to allow users to quickly develop simulation models of the work flow through manufacturing systems. The system described takes a Petri net for its input, and then generates an OPS5 simulator as output. The simulation model developed may then be used to size flexible assembly systems and flexible manufacturing systems based on the system performance and resource utilisation data generated by the model. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Fourth-Generation Language, Functional Capabilities, Forecasting, Programming, Programming Management, Performance Improvement, and Estimation

Function-point analysis was used for estimating Cocomo (Constructive Cost Model) tools for the subsequent effort and schedule of the development of an application using Microdata's Application Language Liberator (ALL) fourth-generation language (4GL). The problem was to develop an information system for a correspondence school with numerous and diverse students. A 4GL was chosen for high productivity, functional prototyping capabilities, suitability to the data's characteristics, and ease of use. ALL provided good performance, its Pick operating system handled data irregularities well, relative ease of learning and use, and functional capabilities. Function-point analysis and Cocomo tools provided reasonable guages of ALL application development. Details of the implementation and results are described.

Command-Driven User Interfaces, Interactive Systems, Operating System, Application Development Software, Prototype, Applications Programming, and Software Design

A promising approach to the design of dialog between a user and an interactive program is developed. The method provides a system, called XS-2, that integrates specification, rapid prototyping, and the actual use of application dialogs. The XS-2 command language grammar, a non-procedural description language based on regular expressions, is used to specify commands of any application program. The syntax of the command specification is made visible to the user; command names and their activation rules are displayed as a command tree. A small set of tools is thus provided for the development and automatic translation of the command specification into a prototype application module in Modula-2, and therefore no programming work is needed to design and evaluate the commands of an application. An advanced end user can develop his own prototype application without a programmer's assistance.

Automatic Programming, Program Generators, Requirements Analysis, and System Development

The expectations of and myths about automatic programming have evolved in concert with research and commercial developments in programming tools. Automatic programming uses procedural, transformational, deductive and inspection methods for converting user domain specific knowledge into implementation specific action or programs. Unfortunately there are several user myths as to the capabilities and requirements of such tools. A variety of commercially available systems with limited automatic programming functioning include: database query systems, fourth-generation languages, program generators, high-level design aids, project management tools and high-level prototyping languages. The progress in such computer-aided software engineering tools is rapid, but several programming management problems must also be addressed to support the potential of automatic programming.

Technology, Boolean Algebra, Distributed Systems, Executable Statements, Specifications, Finite State Automata, Switching, Models, and Computational Complexity

A specification model that is based on the finite state machine, but that is also distributed, is presented. The model allows the user to decompose a large system into separate views, each of which is a complete system in itself. The model further shows how the whole system would behave as viewed from a certain angle. The combined views provide a complete picture of the whole system, distributing the complexity of a large centralized system and thereby making it more manageable. A simple execution scheme is also presented for the model. A high-level state-transaction language called SXL is used so that constructs in the model are expressed as pre- and post-conditions of transactions. All views in the model are able to proceed in a parallel but harmonious fashion because of the execution scheme, thereby yielding a working prototype for the modeled system.

Real-Time System, Prototype, Software Design, Models, Troubleshooting, Dataflow Architecture, Dataflow Languages, and Control Structures

Software technology must meet the increasing demand for high-quality systems. Rapid prototyping insures that software meets user needs, increases reliability and cuts down on costly changes in requirements. In constructing prototypes developers must satisfy and relate to its requirements. The prototype must be easy to modify and have easy-to-read code for documentation and support. A prototype can be spruced up later, programmer time should be used to maximize rapid feedback. Problem decomposition is central, as is an automated support environment. Software should be created in modules to speed later updates. Improved methods of module organization and retrieval should be established and computer-aided modification of the prototype would be more effective to execute user feedback.

Resource Management and Software

This paper discusses resource utilization over the life cycle of software development and discusses the role that the current 'waterfall' model plays in the actual software life cycle. Software production in the NASA environment was analyzed to measure these differences. The data from 13 different projects were collected by the Software Engineering Laboratory at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and analyzed for similarities and differences. The results indicate that the waterfall model is not very realistic in practice, and that as technology introduces further perturbations to this model with concepts like executable specifications, rapid prototyping, and wide-spectrum languages, we need to modify our model of this process. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)

Real-Time System, Prototype, Programming Language, ADA, Embedded Systems, Large-Scale Systems, Software Quality, Software Engineering, and Technology

Present software development methods are not sufficient to handle the fast growing demand for larger systems and higher-quality software. Rapid prototyping may be the solution for improved programming productivity and software reliability. PSDL is a system description language for describing prototypes of real-time software systems. PSDL supports rapid prototyping based on abstractions and reusable software components. It is useful for very large real-time systems and for prototyping typical Ada applications. Information is provided on control constraints, computational models, timing constraints, hierarchical constraints, requirements for the hyperthermia system, prototyping methodology and the support environment.

Software Engineering, Cost of Programming, Prototype, Models of Computation, Program Development Techniques, Technology, Comparison, and Performance/Cost Relationship

Five approaches to software engineering are presented to decrease shortfall, lateness and inappropriateness in varying degrees. Alternate models of software development are needed due to escalating software development costs and unacceptable levels of reliability, performance and functionality. Methods employed include prototyping, software synthesis and reusable software. The paradigm presented is useful to help compare and contrast alternative software development life cycle models in relation to user needs and life cycle costs.

Code Generator, Specifications, Algebraic Languages, Methods, Study, Computer Science, Syntax, Semantics, Hierarchical Organization, and Abstract Data Types

We show how the problem of code generation for a simple language can be treated fully algebraically. The algebraic approach enjoys several advantages which should be demonstrated here. First, it allows a uniform specification both of the abstract syntax and of the semantics of the source and the target language on one side and of the code generation on the other side by means of hierarchical abstract data types. Moreover, theorems about the compiler, such as the preservation of the semantics, can be proved by induction on the term structure of the abstract syntax. Furthermore, existing tools for rapid prototyping with abstract data types can be applied to validate the specification against the intention in an early stage. In addition, this paper shows how such a system can also be used for performing induction proofs of conjectures. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher)

Automatic Programming, Event-Driven Systems, Concurrent Programming, Algorithm, and Specifications

An event-based specification language (ESL) is developed for specifying and prototyping executable concurrent programs in the ECSP (extended communicating sequential processes) concurrent extension of the CSP language. ESL is particularly appropriate for describing distributed applications through the 'constructive' definition of an explicit set of allowable behaviors. Certain behavioral conditions are defined as a function of past computational history. Both processes and complex events in the concurrent program are specified by ESL. The ESL specification can be automatically translated into ECSP, and an algorithm is described that effects the process. Details of the ESL language and translation algorithm are described.

New Technique, Relational Languages, Research and Development, Methods, Application Development Software, Cost Benefit Analysis, Applications, System Design, Strategic Planning, ADA, Prototype, and Software Engineering

A relational programming methodology is developed that enables the rapid design and prototyping of complex, evolutionary software applications, even by non-professionals with minimal supervision. Only relational data structures are used for system content and interface, and programming uses relational languages with an emphasis on relational algebra. The method is successfully applied to the development of two large projects: the Ada Relational Translator experimental compiler-interpreter for Ada and the Multi-Micro Line tool set for constructing multi-microprocessor applications. Cited advantages of the relational programming methodology include: avoiding early commitment to designing data structures and algorithms, extensive facilities for extracting data views when unanticipated functions must be added, and program structuring is decoupled from programming group structure.

Prototype, Microcomputer, Software Design, Evaluation, I/O Device, Global Specialties Corp. -- Product information, and Global Specialties PB-88-4 Proto-Board (Computer peripheral)

Global Specialties $299.95 PB-88-4 Proto-Board for the IBM PC is a prototyping system that facilitates the design, construction and debugging of PC interfaces. Documentation is brief and complete, but does not contain any PC-based experiments. The connections of the power cable and 60-pin connector need work. The Proto-Board provides needed flexibility and convenience to the tasks of prototyping and experimenting with microcomputer interfaces.

Decision Support Software, Executive, Information Systems, Requirements Analysis, Strategic Planning, Implementation, Study, Egypt, and Politics

This paper provides a new approach for managing the design and delivery of information and decision support systems for strategic decision making. It draws on experiences gained from implementing systems and services for enhancing the strategic decision-making process of the the Cabinet of Egypt. The article challenges the conventional views of conceptualizing decision support systems and methods for managing them. It introduces an 'issue-based' management method for the design and delivery processes. The distinctive features of this approach include a focus on issues rather than decisions, a distinction between information support services and decision support services, prototyping the management of delivery as well as design, and dynamic tracking back-end. Finally, the article compares the conventional and issue-based DSS approaches. Such a comparison suggests that the issue-based approach can be an effective stepping stone for the design and delivery of executive information systems (EIS) in corporate contexts by providing DSS that are 'EIS-ready.' (Reprinted with permission of the publisher)

Man-machine systems, human factors, underseas systems, prototyping, system analysis, guidance systems, Electronic computers. Computer science, and QA75.5-76.95

Important man-machine interface (MMI) issues concerning a submarine command and weapon control system (CWCS) such as crew organization, automation level and decision support are discussed in this paper. Generic submarine CWCS functions and operating conditions are outlined. Detailed, dynamic and real-time prototypes were used to support the MMI design. The prototypes are described and experience with detailed prototyping is discussed. Some of the main interaction principles are summarized and a restricted example of the resulting design is given. Our design experience and current work have been used to outline future perspectives of MMI design in naval CWCSs. The need for both formal and experimental approaches is emphasized.

Prototype, Cornell University, Research and Development, Models, Design, Manufacturing, Solids Modeling, Algorithm, and Cornell University -- Research

Electronic prototyping, or building a computer model of an object to verify its design, is replacing physical prototyping. Nonetheless, obstacles exist that impede the progress of electronic prototyping. One obstacle is a need for robust geometrical algorithms in computer-aided design systems. Existing algorithms can fail if their correctness depends on the logical consistency of the underlying structures. Research at Cornell University results in a paradigm expected to have wide applicability for producing provably correct programs for various engineering applications. The paradigm has been used to develop a provably correct intersection algorithm. The algorithm is several orders of magnitude more robust than existing codes. The Cornell project also dealt with electronic prototyping that permits designers to experiment with a number of configurations before committing to one design.

Software Engineering, Human Factors, Management, Program Development Techniques, Software Design, Scheduling, and Organization Structure

Software development depends greatly on proper management for its ultimate success. Software design is changed from a linear to an iterative process through use of human factors. Time must be allocated for prototyping, user tests, design reviews and design modifications. The change from linear to iterative also changes the definition of organizational roles by having different teams work on different aspects of the system simultaneously rather than in isolation. The power structure of the organization is changed as well by requiring that multidisciplinary teams share work: boundaries between departments disappear and responsibility for the product at any given stage of the design process is shared by all members of the team. Also discussed are the effects of an iterative approach on project management, communication, resources, personnel organization, and management commitment.

Prototype, Software Engineering, Methods, Integrated Approach, Software Design, Utilization, and Comparison

Computer-aided rapid software prototyping is a highly efficient method for the rapid development of low-maintenance software. The technology is based on a process model that focuses on requirements specification, design, validation, evaluation and tradeoffs between the related software and hardware systems. Rapid prototyping provides evolutionary development of software through the use of an integrated design environment. The output of the process is a working software system model that may be used as a functional or behavioral specification for the final product, a feasibility study for a more complex system or validation of the requirements of the target software system. Advantages of rapid prototyping include greater use of abstraction earlier in the software development process, lower cost of software maintenance and easier integration into the entire hardware/software system.

Prototype, Software Maintenance, Methods, Computer-Aided Software Engineering, Software Design, Object-Oriented Data Bases, Programming Language, and System Design

The process and advantages of employing rapid prototyping for software evolution are illustrated by use of the object-oriented Computer-Aided Prototyping System (CAPS) and its Prototype System Description Language (PSDL). Software is evolved to improve performance, address changing requirements and eliminate bugs. Typically, software evolution accounts for over half the costs of a software system. Rapidly constructing and analyzing prototypes of aspects of or entire software systems can reduce software evolution costs. CAPS consists of three major components: user interface, data base of reusable software components and a software execution support system. These constitute an integrated set of computer-aided software engineering tools that can be used to build and modify prototype systems, assemble code from the data base, generate production code and manage the entire process. PSDL provides a high-level language description of prototype systems, unified conceptual framework and an integrating facility for the tools. Details of the design and functioning of CAPS and PSDL are discussed.

Very-Large-Scale Integration, Computer-Aided Design, Software Engineering, Methods, Object-Oriented Data Bases, Utilization, Iteration, Requirements Analysis, Specifications, Ontologic Inc. -- Product information, and Vbase (Data base management system) -- Usage

The development of the Cbase computer-aided design (CAD) framework for very-large-scale integration (VLSI) circuit design at the University of Southern California demonstrates the value of a rapid prototyping strategy based on an object-oriented data base management system (OODBMS). A major problem in the development of large software systems is specifying and analyzing the potential users' requirements. The software engineer needs tools that enable the evolution of the system design in a manner that can accommodate incomplete initial requirements specifications as well as changing requirements. Rapid prototyping tools enable interactive development, refinement and analysis of multiple software system prototypes. An OODBMS facilitates the process by providing reusable code modules, powerful modeling capabilities and generic programming. Ontologic's commercial Vbase OODBMS package and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology X11 toolkit were employed to develop Cbase.

Software Engineering, New Technique, Case Study, Methods, Utilization, System Design, Prototype, Resource Allocation, Artificial Intelligence, State-of-the-Art, and Mitre Corp. Artificial Intelligence Technical Center -- Research

The Artificial Intelligence Center of Mitre Corp (McLean, VA) developed software storming as an experimental method for prototyping software systems more rapidly and with greater functionality than with other prototyping methods. Software storming is an intense four-week initial prototype software design and implementation effort (plus follow-on phase) that utilizes domain experts and knowledge engineers plus state-of-the-art software development tools and hardware. The four weeks consist of problem definition, action plan development, brainstorming during knowledge engineering and analysis and review. The follow-on phase consists of revision and refinement of the software system. The major differences from other prototyping methods are use of experts to work with knowledge engineers to incorporate appropriate knowledge into a software system and evaluate it and the videotaping of the storming process to improve technique. Software storming was applied to the design of a software system for optimizing placement of equipment in the US Army Mobile Subscriber Equipment System.

Software Engineering, Prototype, Performance Improvement, New Technique, Methods, GUI, Productivity, and Apple Macintosh (680X0-based system) -- Usage

The Oregon Speedcode Universe (OSU) is a programming system for more rapidly prototyping applications on the Macintosh computer through an object-oriented graphical 'showing' process and without the use of programming languages. Showing how an application can be developed and work through the manipulation and sequencing of on-screen interface objects and their interactions and the use of programming generation tools can improve programmer productivity up to ten times. The OSU process consists of developing a 'vacuous' prototype based on the standard Macintosh user interface and adding functionality to that prototype through the use of domain-dependent software development accelerators. The OSU software consists of three tools: the resource designer, graphical sequencer and program generator. Details of the design and functioning of OSU are discussed.

Prototype, Methods, Aerospace Engineering, Research and Development, Flight Control Systems, System Development, Strategic Planning, Software Engineering, United States. Dryden Research Center, Simulation, Flight Simulator, and United States. Dryden Flight Research Center -- Research

The Dryden Flight Research Facility of the NASA Ames Research Center (Edwards, CA) has developed and is enhancing a rapid prototyping facility (RPF) for developing and testing advanced avionics systems. Specifically, the system is designed to perform flight research on avionics employing conventional techniques and/or knowledge-based systems (KBSs) for control. RPF is an extension of the agency's remotely augmented vehicle (RAV) facility, which tests a variety of control algorithms on research aircraft without the need for expensive ongoing avionics modifications. RAV consists of a research aircraft, ground-based auxiliary computational facility and simulator for flight systems development and validation. The enhanced RPF will enable flight-test planning and the real-time simulation of flight performance. Details of the system are discussed.

Prototype, System Design, System Development, Methods, New Technique, Integrated Approach, and Network Diagnostic/Test Equipment

The Programmable Network Prototyping System (PNPS) was developed to provide cost-effective prototyping and behavior analysis of communication networks. PNPS consists of reusable hardware modules, host hardware for control and observation and several software tools. The hardware modules enable the simulation of a variety of network configurations through the implementation of such generic communications functions as transmission and reception, pattern matching and signal propagation. Individual hardware modules consist of a channel emulator and node emulators. Node emulators consist of a network controller and either host emulator or Integrated Services Digital Network workstation. Configuration of the components and their functions are controlled by such software tools as the CE specification language, two high-level languages, user interface, design evaluation tools and the system software language. The PNPS provides a three-phase network design and evaluation process consisting of specification, experiment and analysis.

Outlook, Software Validation, Software Quality, Software Engineering, Quality Control, Error Trapping, Research and Development, and Program Development Techniques

Better software verification and validation (V&V) tools will be needed as engineers strive to improve software productivity and quality. Changes in seven basic categories will drive the development of tomorrow's V&V technology. An aging software base will need reverse-engineering and updating to remain useful. Greater consumer awareness will cause developers to pay more attention to product-liability and consumer-protection factors. Complex applications will require the incorporation of V&V early in the product cycle. High-risk applications will require more extensive, redundant and complementary V&V activities. The reuse of documentation, designs, code, test plans and test results will reduce some V&V activities, but new techniques will be needed to ascertain the adequacy of the initial V&V effort. V&V activities will have to account for prototyping. Increased productivity among software developers will require the streamlining of V&V activities.

Evaluation, Object-Oriented Languages, C Programming Language, Application Development Software, Whitewater Group Inc. -- Product information, Digitalk Inc. -- Product information, Stepstone Inc. -- Product information, ParcPlace-Digitalk Smalltalk/V (Application development software) -- Evaluation, Actor (Application development software) -- Evaluation, and Objective-C (Compiler) -- Evaluation

Digitalk Inc's Smalltalk-V 2.0, Whitewater Group Inc's Actor 1.2 and Stepstone Inc's Objective-C are all good object-oriented programming environments. The MS-DOS version of Smalltalk-V needs at least 512Kbytes of RAM and two disk drives and costs $99.95. The Macintosh version requires 1Mbyte of RAM and a hard disk. Both the Macintosh and OS-2 versions cost $199.95. Actor 1.2 is a programming environment for the Actor language. It can run on any system that can run Microsoft Windows-286 or Windows-386, versions 2.1 or later, and it costs $495. Objective-C is a language extension to C that runs on 80286-based microcomputers and costs $495. Smalltalk-V's low price and ease of use make it an excellent prototyping system. Actor's greatest strength is its ability to rapidly build applications that run under the Microsoft Windows environment. Objective-C is a good system for those experienced with C programming language but who do not yet want the complexity of C++.