![[Flavors]](../../SitePix/flavors-logo.gif){kind=logo}
|
Flavors Technology, Inc. |
The Parallel Inference Machine (PIM) is a massively parallel controller designed to execute thousands of control programs concurrently and in real-time. The programs that make up an application are developed, debugged, and improved on a development workstation with a software package called Paracell Navigator. Once an application is loaded into the PIM, the workstation is not required for execution.
Paracell is a language for programming the PIM, a key that unlocks the power of PIM. With this key, you have the full power of the PIM at your command. To execute routines on the PIM, you must first write the application in Paracell on a development workstation. The Paracell Compiler in turn converts the Paracell code into another language designed to run directly on PIM, called FIL. The compiled code is then loaded into PIM and executed continuously.
To make Paracell as accessible as possible, Paracell was modelled after the most accessible language, English. Paracell language consists of noun, verb, preposition, conjunction, and other elements of English. The structure of Paracell is similar to English, also. A sentence in Paracell requires at least one noun-verb pair, to state or assert an action. Some actions are confined to the workstation and some are carried out on the PIM.
Though similar, there are some important differences between English and Paracell. The primary objective of Paracell is programming, to convey the user's intentions to a computing device. The scope of the language is centered around programming tasks. To accommodate the human side of the programming tasks, Paracell syntax closely follows English. As a result, Paracell has two ancestors -- English and Computer Language. In Paracell, there are flavors of other computer languages, e.g., FORTRAN, C, Pascal. Specification of program control flow is one example of this. The twin heritage allows Paracell to accommodate both the English and the computer science worlds. Wordy English phrases as well as FORTRAN-like concise expressions are supported. As such, you will usually be able to find more than one way to express your intention.
Please note that as in most languages, Paracell is continuously evolving. The constituents of Paracell described in this document are not final. Extensions of the elements and structures found in this document are added on a continual basis.
Top: Table of Contents
Next: Programming Model
|
|
Flavors Technology, Inc. |
Copyright© 1993-6 by Flavors Technology, Inc. All rights Reserved.
