Interprogram Communications, Program String Structures, and Buffer Files

摘要

The basic features of Program String Structures are reviewed in the context of their employment in the generation and modernization of large programming systems. The principles of operation of the Buffer File, the fundamental element of the Program String Structure are described. The implications of the application of Buffer Files outside the framework of the Program String Structure are examined in terms of their unique characteristics. The Buffer File mode of operation provides a generic method for effecting both intra-computer and inter-computer program communication. It can be used for the passage of streams of data from one program to another, as well as for the passage of the more static program state type data. The Buffer File mode of operation may be used to synchronize the execution of otherwise asynchronously running programs and as a basic scheduling and resource allocation mechanism of the computer monitor system. (Author)