Computer language processing
Summary
We teach the fundamental aspects of analyzing and interpreting computer languages, including the techniques to build compilers. You will build a working compiler from an elegant functional language into machine code using a popular backend called LLVM (https://llvm.org)
Content
See https://lara.epfl.ch/w/cc
1. Overview, source languages and run-time models
2. Review of formal languages
3. Lexical analysis
4. Syntactic analysis (parsing)
5. Name analysis
6. Type checking
7. Code generation
8. Correctness of compilers
Keywords
programming language;
compiler;
interpreter;
regular expression;
context-free grammar;
type system;
code generation;
static code analysis
Learning Prerequisites
Recommended courses
Discrete Mathematics
Theory of computation
Functional Programming
Computer architecture
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, the student must be able to:
- Design a programming language
- Construct a compiler
- Coordinate development with project partner
- Formulate correctness conditions for compiler
- Estimate time to implement a programming language feature
- Produce a working programming language implementation
- Decide which language features make implementation difficult
- Specify programming language and compiler functionality
Transversal skills
- Assess progress against the plan, and adapt the plan as appropriate.
- Evaluate one's own performance in the team, receive and respond appropriately to feedback.
- Respect the rules of the institution in which you are working.
- Continue to work through difficulties or initial failure to find optimal solutions.
- Demonstrate a capacity for creativity.
- Take feedback (critique) and respond in an appropriate manner.
- Make an oral presentation.
- Write a scientific or technical report.
Teaching methods
Lectures, exercises, labs
Expected student activities
- Follow lectures
- Project work, indepdently and under supervision of assistants
Assessment methods
The grade is based on a midterm exam (30%) as well as programming, testing, documentation, and presentation of several projects done on student's own laptops during the semester (70%).
Different groups of students may be assigned different variants of projects. There may be small but unavoidable variations in the difficulty of different variants.
Supervision
Office hours | Yes |
Assistants | Yes |
Forum | Yes |
Resources
Bibliography
Andrew W. Appel, Modern compiler implementation in Java (or ML), Addison-Wesley 1997 (full PDF available from EPFL library)
Alfred V. Aho, Monica S. Lam, Ravi Sethi, Jeffrey D. Ullman: Compilers: Principles, Techniques, and Tools (2nd Edition, 2006)
Ressources en bibliothèque
Notes/Handbook
Faboulous and gently paced videos: https://www.coursera.org/course/compilers
Websites
Moodle Link
Prerequisite for
Advanced compiler construction
Recommended for Foundations of software
In the programs
- Semester: Spring
- Exam form: During the semester (summer session)
- Subject examined: Computer language processing
- Lecture: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Exercises: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Project: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Type: optional
- Semester: Spring
- Exam form: During the semester (summer session)
- Subject examined: Computer language processing
- Lecture: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Exercises: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Project: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Type: optional
- Semester: Spring
- Exam form: During the semester (summer session)
- Subject examined: Computer language processing
- Lecture: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Exercises: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Project: 2 Hour(s) per week x 14 weeks
- Type: optional
Reference week
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