APL: The language of science and management

ABSTRACT

APL (A Programming Language) has been in use at the Space Department of The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) for scientific problem solving. APL was a very attractive alternative to the slow, expensive and often unavailable pool of scientific programmers, and became the language of choice for a variety of scientific projects. APL was not considered to be suitable for solving business and management related problems or for building end-user applications. A critical need for modern management tools, the availability of experienced APL Programmer/Analysts, and the introduction at JHU/APL of APL Application Development Programming Productivity (ADPP) tools, resulted in management decision to explore the potential of APL for developing end-user applications. The two business (management) oriented applications which have been developed have resulted in management's acceptance of APL as an end-user application development language in addition to its traditional role in science and engineering. The rationale for choosing APL to develop end-user business applications and a short description of some of the ADPP tools and applications developed are the subject of this paper.

REFERENCES

• 1: David M. Weintraub, A flexible full-screen applications development workspace utilizing APL syntax, Proceedings of the international conference on APL, p.187-193, April 10-13, 1983, Washington, D.C., United States
• 2: Robert Jernigan , Arie Eisner, A generalised data base interface for APL, ACM SIGAPL APL Quote Quad, v.16 n.4, p.158-163, 1986
• 3: R. D. Stockbridge , A. Eisner , R. Jernigan, Issues in data base management for APL2, Proceedings of the international conference on APL, p.314-317, December 1987, Sydney, Australia

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  D. Software
  D.3 PROGRAMMING LANGUAGES
      D.3.2 Language Classifications

          Nouns: APL

Additional Classification:
  D. Software
  D.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
      D.2.2 Design Tools and Techniques
          Subjects: User interfaces

  J. Computer Applications
  J.1 ADMINISTRATIVE DATA PROCESSING
      Subjects: Business
  J.2 PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING
      Subjects: Aerospace

General Terms:
Human Factors, Languages