Good design principles in a compiler university course

ABSTRACT

This paper presents what aims to be an example of good design principles applied to compiler construction. To be more specific, it presents an interpreter of a very simple object oriented language, called SmallScript, that has been designed to be taught in a Compiler University course. Our aim is not to develop a new, revolutionary language, neither to show a spectacular advance in some research field of compiler construction. Instead, as university teachers, we aim to offer both students and teachers an example of how a modern interpreter can be designed, focusing on object orientation and using modern tools like JavaCC and JJTrree.

REFERENCES

• 1: Java Compiler Compiler™ (JavaCC). www.webgain. com/products/java_cc
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• 9: James Gosling , Bill Joy , Guy Steele , Gilad Bracha, Java Language Specification, Second Edition: The Java Series, Addison-Wesley Longman Publishing Co., Inc., Boston, MA, 2000

INDEX TERMS

Keywords:
JJTree, JavaCC, compiler design, design patterns, interpreter, object orientation