Reusability of mathematical software: a contribution

Mathematical software is devoted to solving problems involving matrix computation and manipulation. The main problem limiting the reusability of existing mathematical software is that programs are often not initially designed for being reused. Therefore, it is hard to find programs that can be easily reused. A programming methodology useful for designing and implementing reusable code is presented. A portion of code designed and implemented for being reused is called a unit. The units are self-contained software components featuring a high degree of information hiding. This way of organizing software facilitates the reuse process and improves the understandability of units. To speed up the implementation process, a system supporting the reusability of units from an existing software library is particularly useful. The functionality of the EasyCard system, which creates, maintains, and queries a catalog of units is discussed