category: distributed


Description:
These are languages that include constructs that specifically support distributed programming.


Language:
Glish
Package:
glish
Version:
2.6
Parts:
interpreter, C++ class library, user manual
Author:
Darrell Schiebel <drs@nrao.edu>
Location:
ftp://ftp.cv.nrao.edu/pub/glish/
Description:
Glish is a language, interpreter, and class library for building loosely-coupled distributed systems. Glish implements a "software bus" to which processes are connected and controlled by the Glish scripting language. The Glish C++ library provides all of the tools necessary for processes to connect to the software bus and exchange structured binary data.

The Glish scripting language is a powerful vector oriented programming language which also has constructs for handling and directing all of the asynchronous events flowing on the software bus. In addition, the basic Tk widgets have been bound to Glish. This allows the event flow on the bus and the event flow from user interaction to all be handle and controlled by the same script.

Glish was originally developed by Vern Paxson and Chris Saltmarsh as part of the Superconducting Super Collider project. However since the release 2.5 at the end of 1994, Darrell Schiebel has continued Glish development at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (http://www.nrao.edu/). At the NRAO, Glish is a cornerstone of the AIPS++ project.

Reference:
"Glish: A User-Level Software Bus for Loosely-Coupled Distributed Systems," Vern Paxson and Chris Saltmarsh, Proceedings of the 1993 Winter USENIX Conference, San Diego, CA, January, 1993.
Requires:
C++, sockets, an ANSI C compiler and flex 2.4.6 (or higher).
Support:
http://www.cv.nrao.edu/glish/ glish-request@majordomo.cv.nrao.edu
Ports:
SunOS, Ultrix, HP/UX. Should build on all UNIX systems.
Updated:
1997/11

Language:
Hermes
Package:
IBM Watson prototype Hermes system
Version:
0.8alpha patchlevel 01
Parts:
bytecode compiler, compiler(bytecode->C), runtime
Author:
Andy Lowry <lowry@watson.ibm.com>
Location:
ftp://software.watson.ibm.com/pub/hermes/README
Description:
Hermes is a very-high-level integrated language and system for implementation of large systems and distributed applications, as well as for general-purpose programming. It is an imperative, strongly typed, process-oriented language. Hermes hides distribution and heterogeneity from the programmer. The programmer sees a single abstract machine containing processes that communicate using calls or sends. The compiler, not the programmer, deals with the complexity of data structure layout, local and remote communication, and interaction with the operating system. As a result, Hermes programs are portable and easy to write. Because the programming paradigm is simple and high level, there are many opportunities for optimization which are not present in languages which give the programmer more direct control over the machine.
Reference:
Strom, Bacon, Goldberg, Lowry, Yellin, Yemini. Hermes: A Language for Distributed Computing. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 1991. ISBN: O-13-389537-8.
Ports:
RS6000 Sun-4 NeXT IBM-RT/bsd4.3 (Sun-3 and Convex soon)
Discussion:
comp.lang.hermes
Updated:
March 22nd, 1992

Language:
Tcl
Package:
Tcl-DP
Version:
4.0b2
Parts:
library
Author:
Brian Smith and Lawrence Rowe
Location:
ftp://ftp.cs.cornell.edu/pub/tcl-dp/4.0b2
Description:
Tcl-DP extends the "send" by removing the restriction that you can only send to other clients of the same X11 server. [could someone give a better description? --ed]
Contact:
sumit@cs.cornell.edu
Bugs:
sumit@cs.cornell.edu
Updated:
May 15th, 1998

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