ppxscal/embedding_network huggingface dataset:
The design of usable programming languages
Authors: Michael Hammer
Venue: Proceedings of the 1975 annual conference (1975)

A methodology for the design of programming languages is set forth. The principal objective of this approach is the development of languages that are easy to use; it is argued that conventional language designs do not satisfactorily achieve this goal. The basic principles of the proposed approach are restriction and discipline: by appropriately limiting the programmer's freedom of choice, the number of decisions he must make can be reduced. In particular, it is argued that languages should be designed for individual problem areas, and that each language should be built around a style of problem solving, an algorithmic structure appropriate to its application domain. Principles of declarative and data-oriented programming, which avoid a processor-oriented view of computation, are also set forth.
Progress toward a proposed simulation game base for curricula in decision sciences
Authors: Edwin L. Heard, Geoffrey Churchill
Venue: Proceedings of the 6th conference on Winter simulation (1973)

Use of a special purpose business simulation game as a laboratory vehicle throughout a decision science curriculum is proposed as a pedagogically useful device for achieving curricular objectives. Development of such a game and its requisite characteristics are described. The multi-level nature of the game dictates that major subsystems must exist at different levels in order to incorporate dissimilar decision situations confronting players in various courses. Modular design is the means by which certain multi-level features are incorporated and permits one to &ldquo;tailor-make&rdquo; the game for a particular application. Economies, analogous to overlays in FORTRAN, are achieved since only those program segments or subsystems representing degrees of decision complexity actually present must be stored and executed in core.
Computer aided design of digital systems: Data part exploration
Authors: Satish L. Rege, John Grason
Venue: Proceedings of the 1978 annual conference - Volume 2 (1978)

This work addresses the issue of exploring design alternatives for data part (as contrasted with control part) implementations for digital systems using register transfer (RT) level components. Certain assumptions are made regarding the RT level of design, and a model for data part designs is postulated. It is shown that the number of possible designs is usually very large. A method to enumerate all possible designs is presented, followed by an algorithm that can generate the designs. The algorithm is easily implementable on a computer to explore the data part design space. A simple example, the implementation of a binary multiplier, is chosen and the different possible designs are generated. An evaluation of the designs along the dimensions of cost and performance is then performed and some interesting aspects of the design space are brought out. Finally, the implications on the design space of changing the component costs are described.
The implementation of Etude, an integrated and interactive document production system
Authors: Michael Hammer, Richard Ilson, Tim Anderson, Edward Gilbert, Michael Good, Bahram Niamir, Larry Rosentein, Sandor Schoichet
Venue: Proceedings of the ACM SIGPLAN SIGOA symposium on Text manipulation (1981)

Etude is an experimental text processing system that is being developed in order to formulate and evaluate new approaches to the design of user interfaces for office automation tools. The primary design goal for Etude is to provide the user with substantial functionality in the editing and formatting of documents in the context of a system that is easy to learn and use.
Ray tracing of Steiner patches
Authors: Thomas W. Sederberg, David C. Anderson
Venue: Proceedings of the 11th annual conference on Computer graphics and interactive techniques (1984)

Steiner patches are triangular surface patches for which the Cartesian coordinates of points on the patch are defined parametrically by quadratic polynomial functions of two variables. It has recently been shown that it is possible to express a Steiner patch in an implicit equation which is a degree four polynomial in x,y,z. Furthermore, the parameters of a point known to be on the surface can be computed as rational polynomial functions of x,y,z. These findings lead to a straightforward algorithm for ray tracing Steiner patches in which the ray intersection equation is a degree four polynomial in the parameter of the ray. The algorithm presented represents a major simplification over existing techniques for ray tracing free-form surface patches.
Synchronization of communicating processes
Authors: A. Nico Habermann
Venue: Proceedings of the third ACM symposium on Operating systems principles (1971)

This paper appears in the March, 1972, issue of the Communications of the ACM. Its abstract is reproduced below. Formalization of a well-defined synchronization mechanism can be used to prove that concurrently running processes of a system communicate correctly. This is demonstrated for a system consisting of many sending processes which deposit messages in a buffer and many receiving processes which remove messages from that buffer. The formal description makes it very easy to prove that the buffer will neither overflow nor underflow, that senders and receivers will never operate on the same message frame in the buffer nor will they run into a deadlock.
The STL integrated computer operating system
Authors: Manfred Kory, Paul Berning
Venue: Proceedings of the 1964 19th ACM national conference (1964)

The separation of conventional unit record input/output processing from a large general purpose computer system has been and still is a common and accepted practice among many large-scale computer installations. This kind of processing has been called off-line or peripheral processing and seeks to reduce costs by removing the relatively slow I/O functions such as card reading, card punching, and printing from the large computer and having them performed on smaller less expensive computers. This practice is not without its inherent penalties, all of which tend to reduce the operational efficiency of the system by introducing large throughput times and equivalently large setup times. This paper describes a general-purpose computer system currently implemented at STL that returns the conventional data input/output functions to on-line processes. The paper not only includes a general description of the hardware and software employed but also makes comparisons with prior systems, describes simulaion experiments performed, and evaluates current performance.
An introduction to AMBIT/L, a diagrammatic language for list processing
Authors: Carlos Christensen
Venue: Proceedings of the second ACM symposium on Symbolic and algebraic manipulation (1971)

AMBIT/L is a list-processing programming system. It integrates the general use of recursive functions with a pattern-matching style of programming. Two-dimensional directed-graph diagrams are used to represent the data,and similar diagrams appear throughout the program as the &ldquo;patterns&rdquo; of rules. The system has a simple core, but extends out to accommodate the always complicated requirements of input-output, traps and interrupts, and storage management; it is a large system. The PDP-10 implementation of AMBIT/L is described in this paper.
A characterization of the class of functions computable in polynomial time on Random Access Machines
Authors: Alberto Bertoni, Giancarlo Mauri, Nicoletta Sabadini
Venue: Proceedings of the thirteenth annual ACM symposium on Theory of computing (1981)

Enumeration problems constitute a major part of combinatorial mathematics. Combinatorial mathematics expresses the solution of enumeration problems by means of solving formulas, generally based on the usual arithmetic operations [7]. These solving formulas can be formally represented as programs for a Random Access Machine (RAM) with arithmetical primitives, for which the natural complexity measure is the arithmetical complexity [1].
Towards the formal description of operating systems
Authors: E. J. Neuhold
Venue: Proceeding of ACM SIGPLAN - SIGOPS interface meeting on Programming languages - operating systems (1973)

For a number of widely used programming languages formal descriptions of their semantic have been presented /1,2/. In addition, formal description techniques have been applied to investigate programming languages and to achieve completeness and correctness proofs for algorithms and language implementations /3,4,5/. The formal description of operating systems did not achieve the same kind of success. This is partially due to the large size of currently used operating systems, but also to the difficulties encountered in understanding operating systems to a depth comparable to our understanding of programming languages. To provide a formal description of the mechanisms investigated so far /6,7,8/ and to allow a study of their interactions in a formally defined environment, it is our feeling that a concentrated effort to formally describe the semantic of a complete existing or planned operating systems should be undertaken.
A next step in data structuring for programming languages
Authors: Jim Mitchell, Ben Wegbreit
Venue: ACM SIGPLAN Notices (1976)

An abstraction provides a statement of the properties of a data type without any commitment to a specific implementation. Programs which use abstractions can be developed and verified without regard to how the abstraction will be realized. Any type which fulfills the requirements of the abstraction can be bound in its place without affecting the program's correctness or its proof. In [4], the notion of a scheme as a model for a set of types is developed. A scheme is written as a module which takes normal values plus types as formal parameters. Instantiating a scheme with actual parameters yields a scheme instance which is a data type. For example, one can write a scheme for AVL trees [5] which takes the type of the keys in the tree as a parameter. An instance of this scheme, for example, AVL trees of strings, is a normal data type.
Frangere..decision support in many dimensions or..how to break the old spread sheet approach
Authors: Paul Barnetson
Venue: ACM SIGAPL APL Quote Quad (1984)

This paper describes FRANGERE, IBM's new technique for providing decision support for the planning and control process. It provides management information from a multi-dimensional data structure which the user can view, along any dimensions, as a series of 'pages' or spread-sheets. The information in this structure can be summarised upwards, 'broken back' downwards, or moved sideways, between files on different computers and in different parts of the world. In addition, the planning information in this multi-dimensional structure can be compared with the 'actual' figures held elsewhere on computer files, and in totally different formats. The package provides full-screen support on coloured screens, full system 'help' facilities, and understandable error messages. It provides a large set of pictorial and tabular reports and is a system which the new user can grow into gradually, learning the more advanced facilities at a speed that matches his desires.
Microcomputers as a productivity tool at a satellite campus
Authors: Richard M. Plishka
Venue: Proceedings of the 12th annual ACM SIGUCCS conference on User services (1984)

Many College and University computing centers are taxed to their limits when it comes to providing quality service within constrained budgets. This paper discusses a project taking place at a branch campus which is designed to increase student productivity by off-loading some of the work, which had normally required the use of the main computer system, to existing microcomputer systems. A discussion of the advantages, disadvantages, and success of the project is presented.
Why STRETCH?
Authors: William V. Crowley
Venue: Proceedings of the 1961 16th ACM national meeting (1961)

There are many credible points of view concerning which direction the evolution of computers and information processing systems will take - larger and centralized, smaller and decentralized, special purpose, multiple modularity, etc. Actually, it is not a case of either - or. Information processing systems will develop further in all of these directions. What I believe will evolve is a rearranging and reassignment of problems to computers according to the types of jobs for which they are best suited. For many years general purpose computers have been used for all types of problems, both because there were no special purpose computers available, or a company could not afford different computers for different jobs. Thus the computer which appears to be most applicable to the job requiring the most computer time or showing the greatest promise of savings was selected.
An inflation management system: SOLUTION-33T.M.
Authors: Mary Lou Fox
Venue: Proceedings of the international conference on APL (1983)

This paper presents an overview of SOLUTION-33, a large financial software product which was developed to meet the need of major corporations to comply with the 1979 Statement 33 of the Financial Accounting Standards Board. Intended for application programmers, the paper discusses design goals and technical design issues. The innovative approaches of this product include its design as a package financial product to meet a specific need of major corporations, its use of existing software as building blocks, and its extensive capability for customizations which can be sewn into the application without difficulty while protecting the security of the production APL code.
Effect of laboratory facilities on computer science curriculum
Authors: R. Brien Maguire, L. R. Symes
Venue: Proceedings of the seventh SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education (1977)

This paper describes the effect that the introduction of computing laboratory facilities has had on the curriculum of an undergraduate Computer Science program. From its initial use by only one course, the laboratory has grown gradually both in terms of equipment and involvement with the Department's teaching program. Demands placed on the laboratory by various courses have influenced the acquisition of new equipment. Conversely, with the addition of new and varied equipment, it was possible to incorporate the laboratory into more courses. The Paper describes this interplay between the development of the laboratory and the growth of the Department. Problems such as maintenance and support staff for the laboratory are discussed whenever they have affected decisions on the use of the laboratory by a course or the selection of equipment.
Fundamentals of stored program control of telephone switching systems
Authors: F. S. Viglinate
Venue: Proceedings of the 1964 19th ACM national conference (1964)

The Bell System has initiated the commercial installation of stored program controlled telephone switching systems. The main purpose for introducing stored program control is to provide flexible systems where additions and changes can be introduced primarily through program modification rather than through changes in hardware. This brief tutorial paper discusses the general organization of these new systems. The basic elements touched upon include control, storage, scanning, signaling, switching, and some associated real-time problems. A description of a simple call is given in order to show how the basic elements of the system fit together. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of redundancy and other techniques used to meet telephone system reliability and maintenance requirements.
Interactive trajectory analysis: the graphic rocket system
Authors: B. W. Boehm, V. R. Lamb, R. L. Mobley, J. E. Rieber
Venue: Proceedings of the 6th annual Design Automation Conference (1969)

This paper describes an operational interactive computer graphics system, called Graphic ROCKET, currently being used as a performance analysis aid for preliminary design and evaluation of space vehicle systems. It provides means for rapidly specifying and evaluating the performance of a wide range aerospace vehicle designs and flight plans.
Convex decompositions of polyhedra
Authors: Bernard M. Chazelle
Venue: Proceedings of the thirteenth annual ACM symposium on Theory of computing (1981)

An important direction of research in computational geometry has been to find methods for decomposing complex structures into simpler components. In this paper, we examine the problem of decomposing a three-dimensional polyhedron P into a minimal number of convex pieces. Letting n be the number of vertices in P and N the number of edges which exhibit a reflex angle (i.e. the notches of P), our main result is an O(nN3) time algorithm for computing a convex decomposition of P. The algorithm produces O(N2) convex parts, which is optimal in the worst case. In most situations where the problem arises (e.g. graphics, tool design, pattern recognition), the number of notches N seems greatly dominated by the number of vertices n; the algorithm is therefore viable in practice.
A microprogramming simulator for instructional use
Authors: J. R. Parker, K. Becker
Venue: ACM SIGCSE Bulletin (1984)

The teaching of computer architecture at a low level is made difficult by the complexity of the real systems which are used as examples and tools. This paper describes a processor simulation system which is intended for use at the second and third year undergraduate level for teaching techniques and concepts in the implementation of instruction sets and microprogramming. The important features of this system are in the user interface, and not necessarily in the actual processor which is simulated.
Organizing the annual housing surveys as a very large relationally oriented data base
Authors: Andrew A. Beveridge, Jennifer A. Norris
Venue: Proceedings of the joint conference on Easier and more productive use of computer systems. (Part - I): Information processing in the social sciences and humanities - Volume 1981 (1981)

Since 1973, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, through the Bureau of the Census, has conducted a yearly nationwide survey of housing. Data on a wide range of topics are collected during face to face interviews with over 190,000 individuals. Plainly, the Annual Housing Surveys represent one of the largest longitudinal general social and economic data collection efforts ever undertaken.Due to changing policy and substantive interests, as well as government requirements, the interview schedules have changed significantly from year to year. Since the great potential for data from the Annual Housing Survey is in longitudinal analysis, it is necessary to have common variable definitions and consistent formats.To accomplish this, we have developed and implemented a system which includes: 1) documentation of the variables, questionnaires, and files across all years and surveys; 2) files created using one homogeneously defined data structure; 3) a simple system to produce custom user files; 4) a method to easily produce routine custom analyses and tabulations using the data.We have applied the relational model to create a small data base which documents the interview schedules, files and variable definitions. From this we produce up to date documentation and computer programs which are used to update the Annual Housing Survey data base, to handle custom file requests, and to perform analyses.
A conversational system for engineering assistance: Aladin
Authors: Yvon Siret
Venue: Proceedings of the second ACM symposium on Symbolic and algebraic manipulation (1971)

This paper is devoted to the display system of a system named Aladin which is very similar to Martin's Symbolic Mathematical Laboratory. Therefore, it is not something basically new; nevertheless, we want to show the way we have followed to implement a two dimensional output in Aladin. ALADIN is an experimental system designed for studying the most important commands that are applicable to a certain class of engineering problems: those involving formula manipulation.
Performance evaluation of IAS on the PDP-11/70
Authors: Rollins Turner, Hank Levy
Venue: Proceedings of the 1976 ACM SIGMETRICS conference on Computer performance modeling measurement and evaluation (1976)

Digital Equipment Corporation has recently developed a new PDP-11 operating system called IAS&mdash;Interactive Application System. Since the system was to be significantly different from existing PDP-11 systems, customers and DEC field personnel had little information about the kinds of load it would handle or what level of performance could be expected. The work reported in this paper had the objective of producing such information prior to the release of the product. The major goal was to produce a set of guidelines indicating the kinds of loads that could be handled within limits of acceptable performance by various IAS configurations. The guidelines had to be in terms understandable to salesmen and customers. At the same time they had to be based on technically sound performance measurements that could be precisely explained and repeated. Our approach to this problem was to characterize each hardware configuration in terms of the users that it could support while meeting specific response time criteria.
Workload classification: Problems and techniques
Authors: H. P. Artis, R. E. Paulhamus
Venue: ACM SIGSIM Simulation Digest (1976)

Workload classification is a methodology which allows the analyst to describe the workload of a computer system with a minimum number of job classes. This technique reduces the effort required to produce models of a system. This could involve verification of actual systems or simulation of proposed configurations. Particular areas of interest include: - cluster analysis techniques - analysis of batch systems - analysis of real time systems - applications with simulation models. The authors primary area of interest is in large commercial production oriented environments with both batch and real time applications.
A placement capability based on partitioning
Authors: Lorretta I. Corrigan
Venue: Proceedings of the 16th Design Automation Conference (1979)

Placement is one of the numerous coordinated capabilities of the Hughes Computer-Aided Design (CAD) System. It is applicable to all of the technologies currently used to produce digital electronic assemblies and is particularly well suited to the allocation requirements of LSI and VLSI. The algorithm that is used iteratively selects sequences of module interchanges that minimize the number of signal crossings over a designated partition (line) across the assembly. An orderly succession of horizontal and vertical partitions causes a rearrangement of modules that facilitates routing, distributes wiring density and achieves minimal wirelength. The placement algorithm, its computational efficiency, its robust applicability, and the parts it plays within the Hughes CAD System are presented.
Description of course given on &ldquo;Computers in the Humanities and Social Science&rdquo;
Authors: Jean E. Sammet
Venue: Proceedings of the fifth SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education (1975)

This paper describes a course entitled &ldquo;Computers in the Humanities and Social Science&rdquo; given at a small liberal arts college. The basic purpose of the course was to provide the student with knowledge about how a computer could be used in various fields (e.g. art, literature, economics). There was no intent to make the student expert in using the computer, although several programs were written and debugged as homework assignments. This paper includes appendices which show copies of the homework assignments given, a questionnaire on attitudes toward the computer, as well as further details on the course.