Language workbench explained

A language workbench^{[1] [2]} is a tool or set of tools that enables software development in the language-oriented programming software development paradigm. A language workbench will typically include tools to support the definition, reuse and composition of domain-specific languages together with their integrated development environment. Language workbenches were introduced and popularized by Martin Fowler in 2005.

Language workbenches usually support:

• Specification of the language concepts or metamodel
• Specification of the editing environments for the domain-specific language
• Specification of the execution semantics, e.g. through interpretation and code generation

Examples

• Racket is a cross-platform language development workbench including compiler, JIT compiler, IDE and command-line tools designed to accommodate creating both domain-specific languages and completely new languages with facilities to add new notation, constrain constructs, and create IDE tools.^{[3] [4] [5]}
• JetBrains MPS is a tool for designing domain-specific languages. It uses projectional editing which allows overcoming the limits of language parsers, and building DSL editors, such as ones with tables and diagrams. It implements language-oriented programming. MPS combines an environment for language definition, a language workbench, and an Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for such languages.^[6]
• Kermeta is an open-source academic language workbench. The Kermeta workbench uses three different meta-languages: one meta-language for the abstract syntax (aligned with Emof); one for the static semantics (aligned with OCL) and one for the behavioral semantics (called the Kermeta Language itself).
• Melange is a language workbench that provides a modular approach for customizing, assembling and integrating multiple domain-specific language (DSL) specifications and implementations.^[7]
• Spoofax.^[8] is an open-source language workbench for generating parsers, type checkers, compilers, interpreters, as well as IDE plugins for Eclipse and IntelliJ.^[9] It uses SDF and a scannerless GLR parser for syntax, and formalisms derived from Stratego/XT for semantics.
• Xtext is an open-source software framework for developing programming languages and domain-specific languages (DSLs). Unlike standard parser generators, Xtext generates not only a parser, but also a class model for the abstract syntax tree. In addition, it provides a fully featured, customizable Eclipse-based IDE.^[10]
• Meeduse^[11] is an EMF-based framework that allows one to build, prove and animate executable domain-specific languages (xDSLs) using the B Method. The tool embeds ProB, and animator and model-checker of the B Method.^[12]

See also

• Language-oriented programming
• Compiler-compiler
• Intentional programming

External links

• Martin Fowler, Language Workbench
• Language Workbench Challenge

Notes and References

1. Web site: LanguageWorkbench . Fowler . Martin . 14 April 2015.
2. Web site: Language Workbenches: The Killer-App for Domain Specific Languages? . Fowler . Martin . 12 June 2005 . 14 April 2015.
3. Feltey . Daniel . Florence . Spencer P. . Knutson . Tim . St-Amour . Vincent . Culpepper . Ryan . Flatt . Matthew . Findler . Robert Bruce . Felleisen . Matthias . Languages the Racket Way . 2016 Language Workbench Challenge . 2016 . 65 . 9 June 2019.
4. Tobin-Hochstadt . S. . St-Amour . V. . Culpepper . R. . Flatt . M. . Felleisen . M. . Languages as Libraries . Programming Language Design and Implementation . 2011 .
5. News: Flatt . Matthew . Creating Languages in Racket . Communications of the ACM . 2012 . 2012-04-08 .
6. Web site: JetBrains MPS: Domain-Specific Language Creator.
7. Web site: Melange.
8. Web site: The Spoofax Language Workbench.
9. Kats . Lennart C. L.. Visser . Eelco. The Spoofax language workbench: rules for declarative specification of languages and IDEs.. Proceedings of the 25th Annual ACM SIGPLAN Conference on Object-Oriented Programming, Systems, Languages, and Applications, OOPSLA 2010. 2010. 10.1145/1869459.1869497.
10. Web site: Xtext.
11. Idani . Akram . Ledru . Yves . Vega . German . Alliance of Model Driven Engineering with a proof-based Formal Approach . Innovations in Systems and Software Engineering (ISSE), NASA Journal . December 2020 . 6 . 3 . 289–307 . 10.1007/s11334-020-00366-3. free .
12. Web site: Meeduse.