Abstracting Process-to-function Relations in Concurrent Object-oriented Applications ?

ing Process-to-Function Relations in Concurrent Object-Oriented Applications ? Cristina Videira Lopes ?? , Karl J. Lieberherr College of Computer Science Northeastern University Cullinane Hall Boston, MA 02115, USA email: fcrista, [email protected] Abstract. This paper presents a programming model for concurrent object-oriented applications by which concurrency issues are abstracted and separated from the code. The main goal of the model is to minimize dependency between application speci c functionality and concurrency control. Doing so, software reuse can be e ective and concurrent programs are more exible, meaning that changes in the implementation of the operations don't necessarily imply changes in the synchronization scheme (and vice-versa). We make an analysis of concurrent computation, review existing systems and their inherent limitations, and discuss the fundamental problems in abstracting concurrency. Then we propose a solution based on lessons learned with adaptive software, introducing the concept of synchronization patterns. The result is a programming model by which data, operations and concurrency control are minimally interdependent.