ppxscal/embedding_network huggingface dataset:
Integrating an object server with other worlds
Authors: Alan Purdy, Bruce Schuchardt, David Maier
Venue: ACM Transactions on Information Systems (TOIS) (1987)

Object-oriented database servers are beginning to appear on the commercial market in response to a demand by application developers for increased modeling power in database systems. Before these new servers can enhance the productivity of application designers, systems designers must provide simple interfaces to them from both procedural and object-oriented languages. This paper first describes a successful interface between an object server and two procedural languages (C and Pascal). Because C and Pascal do not support the object-oriented paradigm application, designers using these languages must deal with database objects in less than natural ways. Fortunately, workstations supporting object-oriented languages have the potential for interacting with database objects in a much more integrated manner. To integrate these object-oriented workstations with an object server, we provide a design framework based on the notion of workstation agent objects representing principal objects in the database. We distinguish two types of agents: proxies, which forward most messages to the principal objects, and deputies, which can cache state for their principal and act with more autonomy. The interaction of cache, transaction, and message management strategies makes the implementation of deputies a nontrivial problem. The agent metaphor is being used currently to integrate an object server with a Smalltalk-8O&trade; workstation.
Gaining general acceptance for UIMSs
Authors: B A Myers
Venue: ACM SIGGRAPH Computer Graphics (1987)

User Interface Management Systems (UIMSs) have now gained acceptance in the research and business communities. Unfortunately, they are still not widely available or used. This paper proposes three reasons for this: that they are too hard to use, that they are still too limited in the types of interfaces that they can create, and that they are not portable with respect to different machines, operating systems and graphics systems. UIMSs can be made easier to use by avoiding programming-language-like techniques, and they can be made more functional by providing the ability to create Direct Manipulation interaction techniques and to integrate them into modern interfaces. UIMSs can be made more portable by inventing new input models and graphics packages that are appropriate for highly-interactive interfaces and that can work in various environments.
KMS: a distributed hypermedia system for managing knowledge in organizations
Authors: Robert M. Akscyn, Donald L. McCracken, Elise A. Yoder
Venue: Communications of the ACM (1988)

Developers of hypermedia systems face many design issues. The design for KMS, a large-scale hypermedia system for collaborative work, seeks improved user productivity through simplicity of the conceptual data model.
Strategic computing at DARPA: overview and assessment
Authors: Mark Stefik
Venue: Communications of the ACM (1985)

Strategic Computing, a 10-year initiative to build faster and more intelligent systems, is ambitious, flawed by overscheduling perhaps and problems of definition, but basically sound.
Solving the software crisis: toward management of large-scale software development
Authors: A. K. Onoma
Venue: Proceedings of the 1987 Fall Joint Computer Conference on Exploring technology: today and tomorrow (1987)

In software industries all over the world, development of large scale programs is facing serious problems, such as budget overrun, lack of programmers, insufficient software quality and schedule delay. In this session, we will discuss how they are solved and managed in our company.
The definition and rendering of terrain maps
Authors: Gavin S P Miller
Venue: Proceedings of the 13th annual conference on Computer graphics and interactive techniques (1986)

This paper examines three methods, two existing and one new, for the generation of fractals based on recursive subdivision. Both existing methods are found to have defects, which are not present in the new method. A parallel processing algorithm is proposed for the rendering of height fields which is exact and distributes the load evenly between the processors. A method is described for the 'fan-tracing' of height fields to allow the realistic simulation of water reflections.
Designing presentation service by Lotos
Authors: A. Lombardo
Venue: Proceedings of the 1987 Fall Joint Computer Conference on Exploring technology: today and tomorrow (1987)

The effectiveness of the ongoing standardization of Open System Interconnection (OSI) much relies on the formal specification of the related protocols and services; the Lotos language was developed to produce formal specifications of such OSI standards. The design of these complex specifications can follow a variety of approaches and therefore the need of pointing out some design principles arises. In this paper an approach to structuring formal specification of OSI services in Lotos is proposed. The approach is based on the lessons gained by means of an original application of Lotos to the specification of the ISO Presentation service.
Determining online retrieval system display size
Authors: D. Wallace, B. Boyce, D. Kraft
Venue: Proceedings of the 10th annual international ACM SIGIR conference on Research and development in information retrieval (1987)

This paper outlines a problem in commercial online retrieval systems, provides a review of the relevant literature, and presents a solution for a special case of the problem. Previous investigators have considered how to best determine, for a ranked list of records retrieved from an online retrieval system, whether or not the user should continue to display the output. This paper examines the problem of how effective display size can be estimated as a means of assisting the users of commercial online retrieval systems. Although no experimental results are as yet available, the approach presented here will provide a guide to and prolegomenon for systematic study of the problem, as well as a method for providing the estimated number of relevant records remaining in a retrieved set ranked by a retrieval status value.
A profile of today`s computer literacy student
Authors: Jean Buddington Martin, Kenneth E. Martin
Venue: ACM SIGCSE Bulletin (1986)

What are the opinions and biases of students entering this course today? What do these students think they know, what do they think they should be learning? Have their opinions been altered by the technological and software trends? Do younger and older students have similar or markedly differing views and computer experiences. Can the needs of the students be met by such courses, or are the students actually more technologically literate than we believe? Noting the changes that have taken place over the last three or four years in the literacy course, the authors prepared a survey that was completed by all the students in two universities (317 students) during the first class of the fall 1985 semester. The results of that survey are the basis of this paper.
Introduction to the programming language convert
Authors: G Cisneros, H V McIntosh
Venue: ACM SIGPLAN Notices (1986)

We present an introductory description of Convert, a programming language applicable to symbol manipulation problems whose solution may be expressed in terms of transformation rules. We discuss the experience derived from our use of the language and mention some future applications.
AND/OR graph heuristic search methods
Authors: A. Mahanti, A. Bagchi
Venue: Journal of the ACM (JACM) (1985)

Two new marking algorithms for AND/OR graphs called CF and CS are presented. For admissible heuristics CS is not needed, and CF is shown to be preferable to the marking algorithms of Martelli and Montanari. When the heuristic is not admissible, the analysis is carried out with the help of the notion of the first and second discriminants of an AND/OR graph. It is proved that in this case CF can be followed by CS to get optimal solutions, provided the sumcost criterion is used and the first discriminant equals the second. Estimates of time and storage requirements are given. Other cost measures, such as maxcost, are also considered, and a number of interesting open problems are enumerated.
A fast mutual exclusion algorithm
Authors: Leslie Lamport
Venue: ACM Transactions on Computer Systems (TOCS) (1987)

A new solution to the mutual exclusion problem is presented that, in the absence of contention, requires only seven memory accesses. It assumes atomic reads and atomic writes to shared registers.
Concurrent transition system semantics of process networks
Authors: E. W. Stark
Venue: Proceedings of the 14th ACM SIGACT-SIGPLAN symposium on Principles of programming languages (1987)

Using concurrent transition systems [Sta86], we establish connections between three models of concurrent process networks, Kahn functions, input/output automata, and labeled processes. For each model, we define three kinds of algebraic operations on processes: the product operation, abstraction operations, and connection operations. We obtain homomorphic mappings, from input/output automata to labeled processes, and from a subalgebra (called &ldquo;input/output processes&rdquo;) of labeled processes to Kahn functions. The proof that the latter mapping preserves connection operations amounts to a new proof of the &ldquo;Kahn Principle.&rdquo; Our approach yields: (1) extremely simple definitions of the process operations; (2) a simple and natural proof of the Kahn Principle that does not require the use of &ldquo;strategies&rdquo; or &ldquo;scheduling arguments&rdquo;; (3) a semantic characterization of a large class of labeled processes for which the Kahn Principle is valid, (4) a convenient operational semantics for nondeterminate process networks.
An Ada-LISP interface generator
Authors: Souripriya Das, Stephen R. Schach
Venue: ACM SIGAda Ada Letters (1987)

It has been recognized that neither of the two major programming approaches, procedural and non-procedural, can be optimal for every application. The availability of both paradigms in the same environment enables the programmer to choose the appropriate paradigm for each subtask, thereby leading to more efficient programs. In this paper we describe a system that has been developed for interfacing Franz LISP, a language particularly suitable for the non-procedural style of programming, and Ada, a powerful procedural language. This system enables the user to call Ada subprograms from within the Franz LISP environment. The system incorporates a generator which takes as input certain information about the Ada subprogram and then dynamically generates an Ada main unit which is utilized for interfacing. The system allows the user to take advantage of the power of the Ada programming language from within the Franz LISP environment.
Database design: composing fully normalized tables from a rigorous dependency diagram
Authors: Henry C. Smith
Venue: Communications of the ACM (1985)

A new simplified methodology for relational-database design overcomes the difficulties associated with nonloss decomposition. It states dependencies between data fields on a dependency list and then depicts them unambiguously as interlinked bubbles and doublebubbles on a dependency diagram. From the dependency diagram, a set of fully normalized tables is derived.
An alternative to subclassing
Authors: David Sandberg
Venue: ACM SIGPLAN Notices (1986)

Smalltalk-80 obtains some of its expressive power from arranging classes in a hierarchy. Inheritance is an important aspect of this hierarchy. An alternative organization of classes is proposed that emphasizes description instead of inheritance. This alternative can be used with compile-time type checking and retains the important characteristics of Smalltalk's hierarchy.
Designing optimum CRT text blinking video image presentation
Authors: Seiji Kitakaze, Yutaka Kasahara
Venue: ACM SIGCHI Bulletin (1987)

A reference scale has been established to assist in the determination of optimum text blinking times for portions of video image texts being presented on CRT display systems. Optimum text blinking time herein is considered to be that time which most effectively catches and holds viewer attention and quickens his understanding of message import. Three experiments involving questions of the psychology of blinking time were conducted. The first experiment examined subjects' preconceived notions of optimum blinking time, i.e. what they imagined, within their own minds, such times would be for specific text portions. The second experiment determined the gap between those preconceived notions and the subjects' changed concepts of optimum blinking times, based on their experience of visual trials. The third experiment applied a scale of blinking times, based on the experience gained in the second experiment, to a new set of subjects in order to further refine our understanding of optimum intervals. For the portions of text used here, optimum blinking times centered about 1.0 second. Moreover, through an adaptation to the video image presentation system, the effectiveness of the optimum text blinking times and the psychological scale was confirmed.
Monit: a performance monitoring tool for parallel and pseudo-parallel programs
Authors: Teemu Kerola, Herb Schwetman
Venue: Proceedings of the 1987 ACM SIGMETRICS conference on Measurement and modeling of computer systems (1987)

This paper describes a performance monitoring system, Monit, developed for performance evaluation of parallel systems. Monit uses trace files that are generated during the execution of parallel programs. Monit analyzes these trace files and produces time-oriented graphs of resource usage and system queues. Users interactively select the displayed items, resolution, and time intervals of interest. The current implementation of Monit is for SUN-3 workstation, but the program is easily adaptable to other devices. We also introduce a parallel programming environment, PPL, implemented as a superset of C for the Sequent Balance 8000 multi-processor system. Parallel programs written in PPL can produce the trace files for Monit. Monit is also integrated into a process-oriented simulation language CSIM. CSIM allows the creation of simulation models based on multiple processes competing for resources. The similarity between parallel processes in PPL and pseudo-parallel processes in CSIM facilitates this combined use of Monit.
Research on Knowledge-Based Software Environments at Kestrel Institute
Authors: Douglas R. Smith, Gordon B. Kotik, Stephen J. Westfold
Venue: IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering (1985)

We present a summary of the CHI project conducted at Kestrel Institute through mid-1984. The objective of this project was to perform research on knowledge-based software environments. Toward this end, key portions of a prototype environment, called CHI, were built that established the feasibility of this approach. One result of this research was the development of a wide-spectrum language that could be used to express all stages of the program development process in the system. Another result was that the prototype compiler was used to synthesize itself from very-high-level description of itself. In this way the system was bootstrapped. We describe the overall nature of the work done on this project, give highlights of implemented prototypes, and describe the implications that this work suggests for the future of software engineering. In addition to this historical perspective, current research projects at Kestrel Institute as well as commercial applications of the technology at Reasoning Systems are briefly surveyed.
A Survey of Multivalued Memories
Authors: D A Rich
Venue: IEEE Transactions on Computers (1986)

Techniques of storing multiple bits of information in a single memory location are reviewed. Any of several states can be stored in ROM's by adjusting the threshold voltage or the size of a particular memory device. In dynamic RAM's, this can be achieved by varying the charge stored on the cell capacitor. The peripheral circuitry required to distinguish between the states stored in the memory areas is discussed.
An empirical comparison of priority-queue and event-set implementations
Authors: Douglas W. Jones
Venue: Communications of the ACM (1986)

Execution times for a variety of priority-queue implementations are compared under the hold model, showing many to be faster than implicit heaps.
From tensor and suffix notation to APL
Authors: Egon Dorrer
Venue: ACM SIGAPL APL Quote Quad (1986)

It is well known that multi-dimensional algebraic variables and expressions as well as multivariate equations and functions can be favorably described by means of tensor and/or general suffix notation. In this notation otherwise complicated and obscure formulas can reveal their inherently mostly simple structure making it transparent to the reader. Unfortunately, this structure is hidden behind the compact notation of ordinary matrix algebra and AFL. The paper provides a valuable way for the formal transfer of simple yet characteristic tensor or suffix expressions into equivalent APL statements. By highlighting the essential primitive and basic user-defined APL functions pertinent to this topic, both the advantages and limitations of APL are shown.
Conceptual organization of case law knowledge bases
Authors: C. D. Hafner
Venue: Proceedings of the 1st international conference on Artificial intelligence and law (1987)

Conceptual retrieval requires the computer to have knowledge of legal concepts and issues, and their relationship to the case law collection. This paper discusses the organization of a case law knowledge base in terms of three interacting components: a domain knowledge model defines the basic concepts of a case law domain; individual case descriptors describe the particular constellation of concepts that pertain to each case, organized into a frame-based superstructure according to the legal roles they fill; and issue/case discrimination trees represent the significance of each case relative to a model of the normative relationships of the legal domain. Each of these components is described and justified by showing its contribution to the goal of conceptual retrieval.
Why APL2: a discussion of design principles
Authors: James A. Brown
Venue: ACM SIGAPL APL Quote Quad (1987)

APL2 represents a quantum leap in the function of the APL notation over earlier IBM offerings. Achieving a consistent language required going back to the fundamentals and rethinking some of the original principles of APL and in a few cases making some changes. This paper discusses some of the extensions and gives the reasons why they were chosen over other possible extensions.
Supporting OIS design through semantic queries
Authors: B. Pernici
Venue: Proceedings of the ACM SIGOIS and IEEECS TC-OA 1988 conference on Office information systems (1988)

Office information system design is a complex activity which needs conceptual modeling to represent office data and activities in a formal way. The problem of retrieving information from conceptual schemas of office systems is addressed, to support the designer in the different phases of office information system design. A semantic query language is proposed, based on a semantic representation of the TODOS Conceptual Model for office design.
GAO report FGMSD-80-4 revisited
Authors: B I Blum
Venue: ACM SIGSOFT Software Engineering Notes (1987)

The report in this title often is cited as a dramatic illustration of the magnitude of our software crisis. For example, consider this footnote in the IEEE Trans. S.E. (SE10, 1984, p 38).
Problems with automatic restructurers
Authors: Frank W. Calliss
Venue: ACM SIGPLAN Notices (1988)

The value of automatic restructurers in the maintenance phase of the software life cycle will be discussed. Our discussions will centre on programs written in COBOL but the arguments are applicable to programs written in other languages. Some of the dangers of automatically restructuring a program are highlighted and the use of interactive restructurers to overcome these dangers are considered.
Performance and architectural evaluation of the PSI machine
Authors: Kazuo Taki, Katzuto Nakajima, Hiroshi Nakashima, Morihiro Ikeda
Venue: ACM SIGARCH Computer Architecture News (1987)

We evaluated a Prolog machine PSI (Personal Sequential Inference machine) for the purpose of improving and redesigning it. In this evaluation, we measured the execution speed and the dynamic characteristics of cache memory, register file, and branching hardware introduced for high-speed execution of Prolog programs.Execution speed of the PSI firmware interpreter was found to be comparable to that of the DEC-10 Prolog compiled code on the DEC-2060. It was also found that PSI was faster than DEC for executing programs containing much unification and backtracking that require runtime processing.With the cache memory, the hit ratio for application programs was found higher than 96%; this demonstrates that the Prolog execution has much memory access locality. The memory access frequency and the appearance ratio between Read and Write command were also investigated.Concerning the register file, use rate of each dedicated access mode was measured and effect of each mode was discussed. In the branching function we confirmed a high appearance rate of conditional branches and multi-way branches based on tag values.
Playing the language-games of design and use-on skill and participation
Authors: Pelle Ehn
Venue: Proceedings of the ACM SIGOIS and IEEECS TC-OA 1988 conference on Office information systems (1988)

This paper deals with computers and cooperative work. Focus in not on applications for cooperative work, but on the cooperative process of designing such and other computer applications. Focus is on the role of skill and participation in design as a creative and communicative process. The paper suggests a need to go beyond the Cartesian philosophical assumptions of rationalistic reasoning as epistemology and dualism as ontology, so strongly embedded in traditional design methods. There are many philosophical candidates for such a reinterpretation. In this paper I have chosen to elaborate on language-games and the ordinary language philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein. Hence, focus is on the shift in design from language as description towards language as action. Some consequences of such a shift is illustrated with reflections on examples from UTOPIA (a research and development project for skill enhancing computer based tools for graphic workers), and with design ideas on an application simulator from a new research programme on Cooperative Design and Communication.
Undebuggability and cognitive science
Authors: Christopher Cherniak
Venue: Communications of the ACM (1988)

A resource-realistic perspective suggests some indispensable features for a computer program that approximates all human mentality. The mind's program would differ fundamentally more from familiar types of software. These features seem to exclude reasonably establishing that a program correctly and completely models the mind.