Installation

• Stabilizers currently require the MLton sources, this should be fixed by the next release

License

• Stabilizers are released under the MLton License

Instructions

• Download and build a source copy of MLton

• Extract the tar.gz file attached to this wiki page

• Some examples are provided in the "examples/" sub directory, more examples will be added to this page in the following week

Bug reports / Suggestions

• Please send any errors you encounter to schatzp and lziarek at cs.purdue.edu

• We are looking to expand the usability of stabilizers

• Please send any suggestions and desired functionality to the above email addresses

Note

• This is an alpha release. We expect to have another release shortly with added functionality soon

• More documentation, such as signatures and descriptions of functionality, will be forthcoming

Documentation

signature STABLE =
  sig
     type checkpoint

     val stable: ('a -> 'b) -> ('a -> 'b)
     val stabilize: unit -> 'a

     val stableCP: (('a -> 'b) * (unit -> unit)) -> 
                    (('a -> 'b) *  checkpoint)
     val stabilizeCP: checkpoint -> unit

     val unmonitoredAssign: ('a ref * 'a) -> unit
     val monitoredAssign: ('a ref * 'a) -> unit
  end

Stable provides functions to manage stable sections.

• type checkpoint
  handle used to stabilize contexts other than the current one.

• stable f
  returns a function identical to f that will execute within a stable section.

• stabilize ()
  unrolls the effects made up to the current context to at least the nearest enclosing {{stable}}} section. These effects may have propagated to other threads, so all affected threads are returned to a globally consistent previous state. The return is undefined because control cannot resume after stabilize is called.

• stableCP (f, comp)
  returns a function f' and checkpoint tag cp. Function f' is identical to f but when applied will execute within a stable section. comp will be executed if f' is later stabilized. cp is used by stabilizeCP to stabilize a given checkpoint.

• stabilizeCP cp
  same as stabilize except that the (possibly current) checkpoint to stabilize is provided.

• unmonitoredAssign (r, v)
  standard assignment (:=). The version of CML distributed rebinds := to a monitored version so interesting effects can be recorded.

• monitoredAssign (r, v)
  the assignment operator that should be used in programs that use stabilizers. := is rebound to this by including CML.

Download

• stabilizers_alpha_2006-10-09.tar.gz

Also see

• ZiarekEtAl06