Meta-model based generation of domain-specific modeling tools

Abstract

Today software development often depends on the communication between di erent shareholders with various professional backgrounds. Domain speci c languages (DSL) aim to close the semantic gap between these shareholders by providing a common method for communication. When using meta-tooling suites or language workbenches it is quiet easy to create DSLs for small scenarios or even for single use. But with the more frequent use of DSLs the need for domain-speci c tooling has also risen. This dissertation deals with the challenges of creating domain-speci c modeling tools using high-level speci cation languages via code generation. It focuses on three impor- tant elements of domain-speci c tool generation such as: speci cation languages, the tool generation process and the generation of domain-speci c APIs, for amplifying the development of plug-ins for the generated tool, which are the main contributions of this dissertation. The rst main contribution focuses on the formalization of the speci cation languages. It is illustrated by detailing the three speci cation languages of the Cinco meta-tooling suite. The second main contribution introduces the product generation process, which is used to create domain-speci c modeling tools from the high-level domain speci c lan- guages, de ned in the rst contribution. The approach is illustrated by the Cinco product generation process (CPGP), which de nes the necessary steps to produce a standalone modeling tool in the Cinco meta-tooling suite. The third main contribu- tion of this dissertation is the generation of a domain-speci c API based on the same high-level descriptions used for the product generation. It uses information present at generation time to create speci c operations that are useful for transformations on graph- models (such as typed successor/predecessor or containment relationships). Therefore the API generation of any product is generated during the execution of the CPGP. The API makes it easy to develop any extensions for the Cinco product due to its domain-speci c nature and the ability to resemble user actions in the generated editors.