Software

About: Software is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 130577 publications have been published within this topic receiving 2028987 citations. The topic is also known as: computer software & computational tool.

Automatically finding patches using genetic programming

Abstract: Automatic program repair has been a longstanding goal in software engineering, yet debugging remains a largely manual process. We introduce a fully automated method for locating and repairing bugs in software. The approach works on off-the-shelf legacy applications and does not require formal specifications, program annotations or special coding practices. Once a program fault is discovered, an extended form of genetic programming is used to evolve program variants until one is found that both retains required functionality and also avoids the defect in question. Standard test cases are used to exercise the fault and to encode program requirements. After a successful repair has been discovered, it is minimized using structural differencing algorithms and delta debugging. We describe the proposed method and report experimental results demonstrating that it can successfully repair ten different C programs totaling 63,000 lines in under 200 seconds, on average.

Patterns for parallel programming

Abstract: The Parallel Programming Guide for Every Software Developer From grids and clusters to next-generation game consoles, parallel computing is going mainstream. Innovations such as Hyper-Threading Technology, HyperTransport Technology, and multicore microprocessors from IBM, Intel, and Sun are accelerating the movement's growth. Only one thing is missing: programmers with the skills to meet the soaring demand for parallel software. That's where Patterns for Parallel Programming comes in. It's the first parallel programming guide written specifically to serve working software developers, not just computer scientists. The authors introduce a complete, highly accessible pattern language that will help any experienced developer "think parallel"-and start writing effective parallel code almost immediately. Instead of formal theory, they deliver proven solutions to the challenges faced by parallel programmers, and pragmatic guidance for using today's parallel APIs in the real world. Coverage includes: Understanding the parallel computing landscape and the challenges faced by parallel developers Finding the concurrency in a software design problem and decomposing it into concurrent tasks Managing the use of data across tasks Creating an algorithm structure that effectively exploits the concurrency you've identified Connecting your algorithmic structures to the APIs needed to implement them Specific software constructs for implementing parallel programs Working with today's leading parallel programming environments: OpenMP, MPI, and Java Patterns have helped thousands of programmers master object-oriented development and other complex programming technologies. With this book, you will learn that they're the best way to master parallel programming too. 0321228111B08232004

Understanding and controlling software costs

Abstract: A discussion is presented of the two primary ways of understanding software costs. The black-box or influence-function approach provides useful experimental and observational insights on the relative software productivity and quality leverage of various management, technical, environmental, and personnel options. The glass-box or cost distribution approach helps identify strategies for integrated software productivity and quality improvement programs using such structures as the value chain and the software productivity opportunity tree. The individual strategies for improving software productivity are identified. Issues related to software costs and controlling them are examined and discussed. It is pointed out that a good framework of techniques exists for controlling software budgets, schedules, and work completed, but that a great deal of further progress is needed to provide an overall set of planning and control techniques covering software product qualities and end-user system objectives. >

An integrated software system for analyzing ChIP-chip and ChIP-seq data.

Abstract: We present CisGenome, a software system for analyzing genome-wide chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) data. CisGenome is designed to meet all basic needs of ChIP data analyses, including visualization, data normalization, peak detection, false discovery rate computation, gene-peak association, and sequence and motif analysis. In addition to implementing previously published ChIP-microarray (ChIP-chip) analysis methods, the software contains statistical methods designed specifically for ChlP sequencing (ChIP-seq) data obtained by coupling ChIP with massively parallel sequencing. The modular design of CisGenome enables it to support interactive analyses through a graphic user interface as well as customized batch-mode computation for advanced data mining. A built-in browser allows visualization of array images, signals, gene structure, conservation, and DNA sequence and motif information. We demonstrate the use of these tools by a comparative analysis of ChIP-chip and ChIP-seq data for the transcription factor NRSF/REST, a study of ChIP-seq analysis with or without a negative control sample, and an analysis of a new motif in Nanog- and Sox2-binding regions.

Exploring the Structure of Complex Software Designs: An Empirical Study of Open Source and Proprietary Code

Abstract: This paper reports data from a study that seeks to characterize the differences in design structure between complex software products. We use design structure matrices (DSMs) to map dependencies between the elements of a design and define metrics that allow us to compare the structures of different designs. We use these metrics to compare the architectures of two software products---the Linux operating system and the Mozilla Web browser---that were developed via contrasting modes of organization: specifically, open source versus proprietary development. We then track the evolution of Mozilla, paying attention to a purposeful “redesign” effort undertaken with the intention of making the product more “modular.” We find significant differences in structure between Linux and the first version of Mozilla, suggesting that Linux had a more modular architecture. Yet we also find that the redesign of Mozilla resulted in an architecture that was significantly more modular than that of its predecessor and, indeed, than that of Linux. Our results, while exploratory, are consistent with a view that different modes of organization are associated with designs that possess different structures. However, they also suggest that purposeful managerial actions can have a significant impact in adapting a design's structure. This latter result is important given recent moves to release proprietary software into the public domain. These moves are likely to fail unless the product possesses an “architecture for participation.”