Stefan Gruner

Model-based approaches for validating business critical systems

Developing a business critical system can involve considerable difficulties. This paper describes part of a new methodology that tackles this problem using co-evolution of models and prototypes to strengthen the relationship between modelling and testing. We illustrate how different modelling frameworks, Promela/SPIN and B/ProB/AtellerB, can be used to implement this idea. As a way to reinforce integration between modelling and testing we use model-based tests and trace-driven model checking. As a result we were able to anticipate problems and guide the development of our software in a safer way, increasing our understanding of the system and its reliability.

Abstract Conjunctive Partial Deduction Using Regular Types and Its Application to Model Checking

We present an abstract partial deduction technique which uses regular types as its domain and which can handle conjunctions, and thus perform deforestation and tupling.We provide a detailed description of all the required operations and present an implementation within the ecce system. We discuss the power of this new specialisation algorithm, especially in the light of verifying and specialising infinite state process algebras. Here, our new algorithm can provide a more precise treatment of synchronisation and can be used for refinement checking.

Editorial message: special track on software engineering: applications, practices and tools

The Special Track on Software Engineering Software engineering by nature is a broad field that brings together people from various disciplines in computing and beyond. It has a particularly wide appeal as it draws academic and commercial researchers as well as professional engineers. The goal of this special track has always been to solicit high quality submissions that reflect this diversity with an emphasis on novel, practical ideas and useful, practicable results. Authors from around the world responded to our call for papers with several strong submissions, and we are pleased with the papers that have been selected for this year’s track. The authors represented universities, research institutes, and companies from over 10 countries, including the United States, Cyprus, France, China, Italy, Spain, India, Germany, Australia, Greece, Israel, the United Kingdom, Austria, Finland, and Norway. In the end, 40 submissions were made but, after 120 reviews, only 10 papers were ultimately accepted. We briefly introduce these papers below.

Abstract partial deduction challenged

This short paper (poster) summarises my presentation [6] at this workshop [1] in September 2002. It also reflects some of the discussions at (and some new insights since) the workshop, before this summary went into print.