Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Austin, S. L..
SSL translator aids in developing and checking software systems. Goal of SSL is to provide form of verification and consistency checking early in design phase. Serves as formal document to communicate software architecure to detailed designers.
SSL (Software Specification Language) is a new formalism for the definition of specifications for software systems. The language provides a linear format for the representation of the information normally displayed in a two-dimensional module inter-dependency diagram. In comparing SSL to FORTRAN or ALGOL, it is found to be largely complementary to the algorithmic (procedural) languages. SSL is capable of representing explicitly module interconnections and global data flow, information which is deeply imbedded in the algorithmic languages. On the other hand, SSL is not designed to depict the control flow within modules. The SSL level of software design explicitly depicts intermodule data flow as a functional specification.
A multiple user version of AMTRAn was implemented on the Datacraft DC6024 computer is reported. The major portion of the multiple user logic is incorporated in the main program which remains in core during all AMTRAN processes. A detailed flowchart of the main program is provided as documentation of the multiple user capability. Activities are directed toward perfecting its capability, providing new features in response to user needs and requests, providing a two-dimensional array AMTRAN containing multiple user logic, and providing documentation as the tasks progress.