[mod.compilers] syntax and error-proneness

johnl@ima.UUCP (Compilers mailing list) (03/17/86)

Question for mod.compilers:

Has there been any formal work on what programming language constructs
are more error-prone than others? Is there some kind of "Hamming
distance" metric for grammars?

Example of what I am thinking of: Pascal's END is error prone because
if you miss one, it could be a long way down the code before the
compiler discovers it. Ada's matched ENDs are safer.

Implications: make compiler construction tools work out such metrics,
when fed the grammar.

	Ken
-- 
John Levine, Javelin Software, Cambridge MA +1 617 494 1400
{ decvax | harvard | think | ihnp4 | cbosgd }!ima!johnl, Levine@YALE.ARPA

The opinions above are solely those of a 12 year old hacker who has broken
into my account, and not those of my employer or any other organization.

johnl@ima.UUCP (John R. Levine) (03/21/86)

I've been collecting in an ad hoc fashion data about errors Ada programmers
make.  I can send you an interim draft of this info, either electronically or
in hard copy.  The file contains about 75K characters.  This doesn't contain
any formal measures of the kind you are interested in, but it has some raw
data on the kinds of errors people make.

John B. Goodenough                           goodenou@wanginst        (CSNET)
Wang Institute of Graduate Studies           harvard!wanginst!goodenou (UUCP)
Tyng Road, Tyngsboro, MA 01879               Goodenough@ISI           (ARPA)
(At Wang Institute until 6/1/86)             617-649-9731
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johnl@ima.UUCP (John R. Levine) (03/21/86)

	I heard of work done at my school which demonstrated with
empirical results that the error rate increases with the use of
goto's.  I have no reference, sorry.  If memory serves me, the
work was done by Rod Oldehoeft (rro@csu-cs).
--
David C. Stewart                          uucp:    tektronix!davest
Unix Systems Support Group                csnet:   davest@TEKTRONIX
Tektronix, Inc.                           phone:   (503) 627-5418

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