Abstract: A system for describing computing environments as electronic documents, programs or other types of electronic representation or data is disclosed. The environment description can be created, transferred and ultimately used to create the specified computing environment for use by an end user, or users, in many different applications. The invention provides abstraction software and a user interface to allow a human user to specify a definition for the computing environment. Desired components are selected and included in the environment definition. Environment definitions can be stored and transferred in a manner compatible with typical electronic information. Environment definitions can be installed onto hardware and software resources by installation software. Environments can be installed on specific components from which the environment was originally abstracted, or on other sufficiently similar components.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that facilitates implementing multi-mode specification-driven disassembler. During operation, the disassembler receives a machine-code version of a computer program. In order to disassemble a specific machine-code instruction from this machine-code version, the system compares the machine-code instruction against a set of instruction templates for assembly code instructions to identify a set of matching templates. Next, the system selects a matching template from the set of matching templates based on the state of a mode variable, which indicates a specificity mode for the disassembler. The system then disassembles the machine-code instruction using the operand fields defined by the matching template to produce a corresponding assembly code instruction.

Abstract: A computer method for patching applications that are incompatible with an operating system is provided. The method determines if an application is compatible with an operating system, and if the application is determined to be incompatible, a debugger is loaded that runs the incompatible application. The debugger calls a handler to patch the incompatibilities of the application when a breakpoint has been reached in the incompatible application during the running of the incompatible application.

Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention provides a system that solves a global optimization problem specified by a function ƒ and a set of inequality constraints pi(x)?0 (i=1, . . . , m), wherein ƒ and pi are scalar functions of a vector x=(x1, x2, x3, . . . xn). The system operates by receiving a representation of the function ƒ and the set of inequality constraints, and then storing the representation in a memory within the computer system. Next, the system performs an interval inequality constrained global optimization process to compute guaranteed bounds on the minimum value of the function ƒ(x) subject to the set of inequality constraints. While performing the interval global optimization process, the system applies term consistency at various places in the process over a subbox X, and excludes any portion of the subbox X that violates term consistency.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method and apparatus for implementation of an input/output stream operator in a dynamically typed language. This operator is built into the language, and allows a value of one type to be streamed to a value of another type by taking the form fromvalue?tovalue. Since the programming language is dynamic, the type of values on either side of the ? operator is of any supported type, and can be modified depending upon the type of operands. For example, a value of any type can be streamed to a value of type “stream”. In this instance, the destination value is attached to, for example, a device such as a terminal or disk drive. A value of type “stream” can also be streamed into a value of any type. In this instance an external source is inputted, for example, into a program.

Abstract: the transmission to and the storage in a customer server computer connected to a network of a plurality of client computers, a Hypertext Markup Language document that includes an embedded program applet for selectively accessing each of the application programs being distributed, and an embedded installation applet for accessing a program for installing the application programs being distributed on said client computers. When a user at one oF the client computers wishes to have one of the application programs installed, the user requests the document, preferably a Web page (i.e. an HTML implemented document), to be displayed, the user selects one of the application programs for installation by clicking on the displayed Web page hyperlink. In response to such a selection, the installation applet is sent to and stored on the client computer that selected said application program.

Abstract: An extensible help facility for a computer software application may include a graphical user interface for communicating with a user, help files arranged in a hierarchical file structure, and software processes configured to perform operations such as (i) enabling a user to generate or modify help files that specify content to be displayed and include an interactive link that, when activated, performs an operation in the application associated with the specified content, (ii) causing the help facility, while executing, to access the generated help files upon detecting that the help files exist in a predetermined location within the hierarchical file structure, and/or (iii) causing the help facility to detect a state of the computer software application and to selectively cause an operation corresponding to an interactive link to be performed by the computer software application based on the detected state.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for interacting with a user to define business rules in a declarative manner. The invention operates to display a rule set as an editable list of conditions and an editable list of actions, the conditions and actions being linked to each other by the combination of an editable list of if-values and an editable list of then-values, wherein if-values and then-values are explicitly linked to each other, conditions and if-values are explicitly linked to each other, and then-values and actions are explicitly linked to each other in the displayed lists.

Abstract: A means is provided for specifying, applying, and managing sets of temporary or permanent additions or modifications to the behavior of object-oriented programs without having to change the code of the program, by using externalized rules. The points at which the externalized rules may be applied is determined by the implementation object model, thus making their specification natural to the program developers who are familiar with the program's implementation object model. The concept of dynamic method-based trigger or control points is disclosed for identifying potential rule attachment points in objects and identifying the rules that are applicable to each dynamic control point.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for verifying at runtime an invariant property of a data structure. In various example embodiments, code that verifies whether a runtime value of the data structure is consistent with the invariant property is automatically generated in response to an annotation of the data structure in the source code. In executing the program, the runtime value of the data structure is compared to the invariant property in the automatically generated code. If the runtime property is inconsistent with the invariant property, the program branches to exception handler code.

Abstract: A statistical approach to estimating software execution times is implemented by preparing a model of a target processing device, correlating the software to be estimated to benchmark programs used in the preparation of the model, and then applying the software to be estimated to the model. The model is developed by determining the actual execution times of the benchmark programs, determining a number of virtual instructions in the benchmark programs and determining a predictor equation that correlates the virtual instructions to the actual execution time. The predictor equation is determined by a linear regression technique that includes a correlation analysis of the virtual instructions, removal of highly correlated instructions, and a combination of stepwise linear regression and multiple linear regression to determine the predictor equation.

Abstract: A system and method for overcoming prior impediments to the downloading of microcode firmware to a target controller of a disk or tape storage unit where an Inquiry command determines the type of firmware required by the target controller while a selection means chooses an appropriately sized buffer array for temporarily storing the firmware. Additionally, a checkout is instituted to make sure the selected firmware is not merely another duplication of the existing resident firmware thus to prevent the unnecessary download of an already existing firmware version.

Abstract: An ultra low power adder with sum synchronization which provides a power reduction method in the binary carry propagate adders by using a carry skip technique. The invention eliminates glitches at the adder outputs by preventing signal transitions at the sum outputs until the corresponding carry signals have reached their final values, which is achieved by adding a synchronization circuitry to the sum calculation path.

Abstract: A lightweight global distribution mechanism distributes packages within a distributed system. The packages may hold any type of content and may hold contents such as patches, programs, documents or files. The distribution mechanism is lightweight in that it incurs minimal computational and memory overhead. With the distribution mechanism, a package index that identifies packages for installation is stored at a publishing master. Client systems may access and analyze the package index to determine which packages to install. The client systems may hold subscription lists that identify the packages to which the clients subscribe. The packages need not be stored at the publishing master but rather may be stored at separate repositories.

Abstract: A Java preprocessor method is provided. A Java template file is received that includes Java programming language code and meta code. The Java template is then processed to create an intermediate program using the meta code, wherein the intermediate program is a Java program. The intermediate program is compiled to create an intermediate class, which is a Java based class, and an object text file is generated using the intermediate class.

Abstract: Methods and systems consistent with the present invention provide an improved software development tool that allows a developer to locate a portion of source code corresponding to a message from a verification tool. The improved software development tool displays a graphical representation of the portion of the source code corresponding to the message in a visually distinctive manner.

Abstract: A system for employing SyncML DM for updating firmware in mobile handsets and other devices. The system employs enhancements to SyncML DM specifications. A SyncML management client employs new commands, specified by the present invention, for retrieving update packages for firmware updates, for the verification of a received update package, the command for saving the update package in an appropriate management object, the command for initiating an update process by an update agent and the command for the subsequent notification of the results of processing by the update agent (success, failure, etc.). More specifically, the SyncML DM management client employs new commands, specified by the present invention, for retrieving update packages for firmware updates and for updating the firmware selectively based on appropriateness, security and authentication, employing fault tolerant means.

Abstract: Methods and systems consistent with the present invention provide an improved software development tool that allows a developer to determine which elements in source code are at most a given number of links away from a selected element. Moreover, the software development tool allows the developer to specify the types of links connecting the elements from the selected element.

Abstract: The service function and information design process is automated in order to shorten the design process period. The same process is based upon the relationships between activities and the information that the activities provide and consume. The relationships are maintained in a predetermined format and are updated by any changes that are affecting the relationships. In addition, the activities are further defined by detailed activities.

Abstract: A toolkit for developing user-interfaces for a system administration program. The toolkit has a server-side application-programming interface (API). The server-side has task-registry files that each describe a task group. The toolkit also has a client-side API. A developer can customize product-specific properties files for a specific product and write code that calls the server-side and client-side APIs to create a graphical user interface for the specific product.