2797141
Evaluating the reverse engineering capabilities of Web tools for understanding site content and structure: a case study
This paper describes an evaluation of the reverse engineering capabilities of three Web tools for understanding site content and structure. The evaluation is based on partitioning Web sites into three classes (static, interactive, and dynamic), and is structured using an existing reverse engineering environment framework (REEF). This case study also represents an initial evaluation of the applicability of the REEF in the related but qualitatively different domain of Web sites. The case study highlights several shortcomings of current Web tools in the context of aiding understanding to support evolution. For example, most Web tools are geared towards new page design and development, not to understanding detailed page content or overall site structure. The evaluation also identified some aspects of the REEF that might benefit from refinement to better reflect Web tool capabilities that support common evolution tasks. For example, Web server log file analysis as a specialized form of data gathering and subsequence information presentation.
14387450
Adoption challenges in migrating to web services
This paper outlines some of the challenges inherent in migrating to Web services. Technology adoption is a continual challenge for both tool developers and enterprise users. Web services are a prime example of a red-hot technology that is fraught with adoption issues. Part of the problem is separating marketing hype from business reality. Web services are network-accessible interfaces to application functionality. They are built using Internet technologies such as XML and standard protocols such as SOAP. The adoption issues related to Web services are complex and multifaceted. For example, determining whether this technology is a fundamental advance, rather than something old under a new name, requires technical depth, business acumen, and considerable historical knowledge of past claims. A model problem from the health care industry is used to illustrate some of the adoption issues that arise in migrating to Web services.
14237402
cJ: enhancing java with safe type conditions
cJ is an extension of Java that allows supertypes, fields, and methods of a class or interface to be provided only under some static subtyping condition. For instance, a cJ generic class, C<P>, may provide a member method m only when the type provided for parameter P is a subtype of a specific type Q.From a practical standpoint, cJ adds to generic Java classes and interfaces the ability to express case-specific code. Unlike conditional compilation techniques (e.g., the C/C++ "#ifdef" construct) cJ is statically type safe and maintains the modular type-checking properties of Java generic classes: a cJ generic class can be checked independently of the code that uses it. Just like regular Java, checking a cJ class implies that all uses are safe, under the contract for type parameters specified in the class's signature.As a specific application, cJ addresses the well-known shortcomings of the Java Collections Framework (JCF). JCF data structures often throw run-time errors when an "optional" method is called upon an object that does not support it. Within the constraints of standard Java, the authors of the JCF had to either sacrifice static type safety or suffer a combinatorial explosion of the number of types involved. cJ avoids both problems, maintaining both static safety and conciseness.
53246444
Program generators and the tools to make them
Program generation is among the most promising techniques in the effort to increase the automation of programming tasks. In this paper, we discuss the potential impact and research value of program generation, we give examples of our research in the area, and we outline a future work direction that we consider most interesting. Specifically, we first discuss why program generators have significant applied potential. At the same time we argue that, as a research topic, meta-programming tools (i.e., language tools for writing program generators) may be of greater value. We then illustrate our views on generators and meta-programming tools with our latest work on the Meta-AspectJ meta-programming language and the GOTECH generator. Finally, we examine the problem of statically determining the safety of a generator and present its intricacies. We limit our focus to one particular kind of guarantee for generated code---ensuring that the generated program is free of compile-time errors. We believe that this research direction will see significant attention and will make a difference in the mainstream adoption of meta-programming technology.
46726074
Adaptive computation-aware scheme for software-based predictive block motion estimation
Abstract The progress in computer processing power makes the use of a software codec (encoder and decoder) a feasible solution in many real-time video applications. The efficient distribution of available processing power to frames and blocks by a software codec resulting in higher output quality comprises two phases: (1) frame-level computation distribution and (2) block-level computation allocation. Predictive block motion estimation algorithms are widely employed in current video coding standards to remove the temporal redundancy, but they do not have the ability to distribute available processing power. To overcome this problem, this paper proposes an efficient frame-level computation distribution scheme based on a sliding window approach and an adaptive block-level scheme which adaptively switches between a predictive computation distortion benefit list heuristic and a buffer control like procedure. Experimental results demonstrate that the output quality of software-based predictive block motion estimation algorithms can be uniformly improved by the proposed schemes.
9069029
Detection of discriminative sequence motifs in proteins obtained from prokaryotes grown at various temperatures
Recent investigations on the stability of proteins have demonstrated various structural factors, but few have considered sequence factors such as protein motifs. These motifs represent highly conserved regions and describe critical regions that may only exist on proteins that remain functional at high temperatures. This investigation presents a method for identifying and comparing corresponding mesophilic and thermophilic sequence motifs between protein families. Discriminative motifs that are conserved only in the mesophilic or thermophilic subfamily are identified. Analysis of the results shows that, although the subfamilies of most protein families share similar motifs, some discriminative motifs are present in particular thermophilic/mesophilic subfamilies. The thermophilic discriminative motifs are conserved only in thermophilic organisms, revealing that physiochemical principles support thermostability.