Very high-level debugging

Abstract

This paper addresses a new approach for correcting a concurrent program. An enhanced SmallAda parser analyzes an erroneous source program and an expert system gives the programmer an explanation of the nature of the program's bug and guides the programmer in how to fix the bug. This approach is given the name Very High-Level Debugging (VHLD) Due to the formidable complexities related to VHLD, the problem domain has been confined to problems faced by novice concurrent programmers. An Automated Debugger for Ada Tasks (ADAT) was designed and implemented to test the feasibility and usefulness of such an approach. A controlled experiment was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of ADAT as both a debugging and instructional tool. The results show that ADAT is a valuable tool for assisting novices in concurrent Ada programming to identify and fix bugs. Further development of ADAT is promising for teaching concurrency because ADAT allows the direct analysis of student's programs without the additional preparation of specification or plans.