After Compilers and Operating Systems : The Third Advance in Application Support

TL;DR

TSIAs represent a new paradigm in application support, extending beyond compilers and operating systems by providing flexible, reliable, and adaptive runtime support for diverse applications and definitions.

Contribution

This paper introduces TSIAs as a third paradigm in application support, unifying and simplifying existing computing practices and enabling new opportunities.

Findings

TSIAs support diverse application types including real-time and secure applications.

Existing TSIAs are feasible for most application domains.

TSIAs open new opportunities by solving longstanding problems in application support.

Abstract

After compilers and operating systems, TSIAs are the third advance in application support. A compiler supports a high level application definition in a programming language. An operating system supports a high level interface to the resources used by an application execution. A Task System and Item Architecture (TSIA) provides an application with a transparent reliable, distributed, heterogeneous, adaptive, dynamic, real-time, interactive, parallel, secure or other execution. In addition to supporting the application execution, a TSIA also supports the application definition. This run-time support for the definition is complementary to the compile-time support of a compiler. For example, this allows a language similar to Fortran or C to deliver features promised by functional computing. While many TSIAs exist, they previously have not been recognized as such and have served only a particular type of application. Existing TSIAs and other projects demonstrate that TSIAs are feasible for most applications. As the next paradigm for application support, the TSIA simplifies and unifies existing computing practice and research. By solving many outstanding problems, the TSIA opens many, many new opportunities for computing.