From: rys@inf.ethz.ch (Michael Rys)
Subject: The VLDB Journal CfP: Special Issue on Persistent Object Systems
Followup-To: comp.databases
Originator: rys@apelc8.inf.ethz.ch
Reply-To: mpa@dcs.gla.ac.uk
Organization: Dept. Informatik, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH)
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 18:57:38 GMT


                      The VLDB Journal

        Special Issue on Persistent Object Systems

                      Call for Papers

The VLDB Journal is planning a Special Issue on Persistent 
Object Systems. Persistent programming is concerned with the 
manipulation of data in a manner that is independent of the 
length of time that the data exists. Thus, data that is normally 
short-lived and manipulated by a programming language, may be 
integrated with and used in the same manner as data that is 
long-lived, and manipulated by a database management system. At 
this level of abstraction the programmer concentrates on the 
complexity of the application and is relieved of the burden of 
organising these physical properties of the data. The advantages 
of persistent programming are economic and the concept of 
persistence can be extended to abstract over all the physical 
properties of data, such as how long it is kept, where it is 
kept and in what form it is kept.

Persistence is central to a number of advances in modern 
computer technologies and methodologies. Database programming 
languages are concerned with programming techniques and 
constructs for describing and manipulating persistent data.  The 
papers in this Special Issue will report on new advances in 
theory, implementation and applications of Persistent Object 
Systems.

Papers are invited that may be practical or conceptual in nature. Topics of
interest include, but are not restricted to:

 	Type Systems and Persistence. What are the appropriate 
  technologies and type models for persistent data?    The 
  equivalence of schema and types.   The provision of bulk types 
  with associated algebras.

 	Concurrency in Persistent Systems. The persistence abstraction  
  raises the need to identify mechanisms for specifying the 
  concurrent use of data and for building transaction based 
  systems.

 	Binding in Persistent Object Systems. What mixture of binding  
  is required for persistent data?

 	Applications of Persistence. As yet persistent applications  
  are few and not well publicised. We invite papers on 
  applications built in a persistent manner.

 	Architectures for Persistent Object Systems. These include 
  hardware addressing mechanisms, software applications 
  architectures and the design and construction of persistent 
  object stores.

 	Large Scale Persistent Systems. How can the definition of the 
  language and its implementation allow graceful growth for the 
  applications where there are genuinely large volumes of data, 
  and multiple users?

 	Data Evolution in Persistent Object Systems. What mechanisms 
  are required for evolving persistent data?

 	Data Integration. Can persistent object systems be designed  
  and constructed which allow the interchange of data between 
  programs written in different languages, as filing systems do 
  now?

 	Distribution, Integrity & Reliability in Persistent Object 
  Systems. It has been suggested that a natural extension of 
  persistence is to allow the programmer to code without being 
  aware of the locality of data. What are the issues in language 
  design which address this?

  Use of Tools in Persistent Object Systems. We invite papers on 
  the description and use of these tools.

 	Methodologies for Persistent Programming. What new prograaming 
  methodologies are available to the programmer utilising a 
  persistent systems for the construction, compilation, binding 
  and execution of applications.

 	Compilers for Languages Supporting Persistence. Compiler 
  technology should be able to take advantage that persistent 
  programming languages are being compiled and executed in a
  persistent environment. We invite papers that exploit this.

 	Persistent and Database Programming Languages. We invite  
  papers on innovations in the design and implementation of 
  persistent programming languages.

Further information on suitable topics may be obtained from the Special
Issue Editors.

Malcolm Atkinson                Ron Morrison
Department of Computing Science Department of Mathematical &           
University of Glasgow           Computational Sciences
8-17, Lilybank Gdns             University of St Andrews
Glasgow G12 8RZ                 North Haugh
Scotland                        St Andrews
UK                              Fife KY16 9SS
                                Scotland
+44 41 330 4359                 +44 334 76161 Ext. 8121
mpa@dcs.glasgow.ac.uk	        ron@dcs.st-and.ac.uk

Potential authors are encouraged to submit original, journal quality papers
to Malcolm Atkinson. Send six copies of a complete manuscript of no more
than 35 type written, double spaced pages. For more specific information
see the Guidlines for Manuscript Preparation of the VLDB Journal which can
be obtained through the Special Issue Editors or the responsible
Editor-in-Chief Hans-J.Schek (schek@inf.ethz.ch). All papers will be
reviewed through the Journal's editorial board. 

Important dates:

	June 1, 1993		Due date for manuscript
	October 1, 1993		Notification of acceptance
	December 1, 1993	Due date for final revision

A preliminary statement of your intention to submit would be appreciated.

Papers will be selected with the advice of referees.  Should there be an
excess of good quality papers compared with the number that can be
accommodated in one issue of the journal then these will be considered for
subsequent issues of the VLDB Journal if that is acceptable to their
authors.

Xref: sparky comp.databases.theory:662 comp.databases:8643