1 research outputs found
A graphical system for parallel software development
PhD ThesisParallel architectures have become popular in the race to meet an increasing demand
for computational power. While the benefits of parallel computing - the performance
improvements due to simultaneous computations - are clear, achieving these benefits
has proved difficult. The wide variety of parallel architectures has led to a similarly
diverse range of parallel languages and methods for parallel programming, many of
which feature complicated architecture-specific language mechanisms. The lack of
good tools to assist in the development of parallel software has compounded the
problem of parallel programming being limited to a field which is both specialist and
fragmented.
This thesis investigates techniques for the graphical specification of parallel programs,
using an architecture-independent graph-based notation representing the design of the
program, combined with conventional sequential languages. Automatic code
generation is used to translate the graph program into executable code suitable for
different parallel architectures. To overcome the differing performance characteristics
of parallel architectures, methods for the graphical adjustment of granularity are
proposed and investigated, and an encompassing parallel design environment is
presented.Engineering and Physical Sciences
Research Council