Integrating Prose as First-Class Citizens with Models and Code

In programming and modeling we strive to express structures and behaviors as formally as possible to support tool-based processing. However, some aspects of systems cannot be described in a way that is suitable for tool-based consistency checking and analysis. Examples include code comments, requirements and software design documents. Because they can only be analyzed manually, they are often out-of-sync with the code and do not reflect the current state of the system. This paper demonstrates how language engineering based on language workbenches can help solve this problem by seamlessly mixing prose and program nodes. These program nodes can range from simple references to other elements over variables and formulas to embedded program fragments. The paper briefly explains the language engineering technology behind the approach as well as a number of prose-code integrated languages that are part of mbeddr, an integrated language and tool stack for embedded software engineering.