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- Path: sparky!uunet!olivea!decwrl!src.dec.com!src.dec.com!jmason
- From: src-report@src.dec.com (James Mason)
- Newsgroups: comp.specification
- Subject: Publication announcement on Larch research paper
- Message-ID: <1993Jan4.205832.19967@src.dec.com>
- Date: 4 Jan 93 20:58:32 GMT
- Sender: jmason@src.dec.com (James Mason)
- Organization: DEC Systems Research Center
- Lines: 54
-
-
-
- PUBLICATION ANNOUNCEMENT
- ------------------------
-
- DIGITAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH CENTER
- -------------------------------
-
- Below is an abstract of a newly available SRC Research Report.
-
- You can retrieve it via anonymous ftp from gatekeeper.pa.dec.com. The
- pathname to it is: /pub/DEC/SRC/research-reports/
- Please read the README file before retrieving.
-
- The report is also retrievalbe via DECnet and VMS in the following directory:
- DECWRL::"/pub/DEC/SRC/research-reports"
- i.e. type at the prompt> dir decwrl::"/pub/DEC/SRC/research-reports"
-
-
-
-
- "Experiences with Software Specification and Verification Using LP, the
- Larch Proof Assistant"
- Manfred Broy
- Report #93, November 12, 1992
-
- 69 pages
-
-
- Author's abstract:
-
- We sketch a method for deduction-oriented software and system development
- The method incorporates formal machine-supported specification and
- verification as activities in software and systems development. We
- describe experiences in applying this method. These experiences have
- been gained by using the LP, the Larch proof assistant, as a tool for
- a number of small and medium size case studies for the formal development
- of software and systems. LP is used for the verification of the
- development steps. These case studies include
-
- * quicksort
- * the majority vote problem
- * code generation by a compiler and its correctness
- * an interactive queue and its refinement into a network
-
- The developments range over levels of requirement specifications, designs
- and abstract implementations. The main issues are questions of a
- development method and how to make good use of a formal tool like LP in
- a goal-directed way within the development. We further discuss of the
- value of advanced specification techniques, most of which are deliberately
- not supported by LP and its notation, and their significance in development.
- Furthermore, we discuss issues of enhancement of a support system like
- LP and the value and the practicability of using formal techniques such
- as specification and verification in the development process in practice.
-