Adapting modules to an integrated programming environment

The design of modules in modular languages, and the model of software development activities portrayed by it, have been well received in batch environments. However, from their experience in the design of the MUPE-2 integrated programming environment, the authors hold the opinion that the model of software activities portrayed by modules in a batch environment is not entirely appropriate in an integrated programming environment. In adapting modules to the MUPE-2 environment, the authors have changed their design and implementation. In particular, they have added a module type, called the supermodule, that can encapsulate related modules, so that the architecture of a software system may be captured, and unified the separate definition and implementation parts of a module into a single module, called the DefImp module, so that some consistency problems due to textual separation can be avoided. They examine the role of modules in a batch environment and give a rationale for their design of modules for integrated environments.<>