In spite of decades of research and innovation in the field of graphical user interfaces, command line interfaces remain popular -- particularly among technical users -- for their power, efficiency, and scriptability. The recent introduction of Microsoft's PowerShell after overwhelming user demand is testament to the enduring appeal of the command line paradigm. I will present my work on Gib, an embeddable programming language that provides familiar Unix shell-like syntax with the features of a modern dynamic scripting language: garbage collection, rich data structures, first-class functions, concurrency, and powerful scoping and namespace mechanisms. Gib is designed to easily integrate into a client application to provide a command-based user interface, either as the primary means of user interaction or as a supplement to a graphical interface. It differs from similar languages such as Perl, Python, and Lua in its focus on interactive use over pure scriptability -- though it is capable of both. My talk will touch on the goals of the language, design considerations, aspects of the language's syntax and architecture, and specific applications of the language.
Advised by Dan Grossman
CSE 403
Wednesday
May 2, 2007
3:30 - 4:20 pm