Toolpack — An Integrated System of Tools for Mathematical Software Development

Abstract

This paper describes the approach being taken in configuring a set of tool capabilities whose goal is the support of mathematical software development. The TOOLPACK tool set is being designed to support such activities as editing, testing, analysis, formatting, transformation, documentation and porting of code. Tools for realizing most of these functional capabilities already exist, yet TOOLPACK aims to do far more than simply bring them together as a collection of side-by-side individual tools. TOOLPACK seeks to merge these capabilities into a system which is smoothly integrated both internally and from a user’s external point of view. The internal integration approach involves the decomposition of all tools into a more or less standard set of modular “tool fragments”. The external integration approach involves the creation of a command language and a set of conceptual entities which is close to the conceptual set used by mathematical software writers in the process of creating their software. This paper describes both of these integration approaches as well as the rather considerable and novel software support needed to make them work.