Xtext: Developing Domain Specific Languages
Abstract
In this webinar Heiko Behrens and Sven Efftinge will explain what DSLs are and how you can benefit from them in today's software development projects. They will demonstrate how to implement a simple DSL for ordering sandwiches, including a parser, code completion, navigation and an outline view.
Xtext is a component in the Modeling/TMF subproject and makes the development of textual domain specific languages (DSLs) straightforward. Just describe your very own language using Xtext's simple EBNF grammar language and the generator will create a parser, an AST-meta model (implemented in EMF), as well as a full-featured Eclipse text editor from that. The Framework integrates with technology from Eclipse Modeling such as EMF, GMF, M2T and EMFT. Development with Xtext is optimized for short turn-arounds, so that adding new features to an existing DSL is a matter of minutes. Still, sophisticated programming languages can be implemented.
The webinar closes with some more advanced show cases to give a glimpse of what Xtext is able to do.
Contact
Sven Efftinge, Branch Manager itemis Kiel
Sven Efftinge manages the itemis branch in Kiel and engages himself there with domain specific languages, generator development and eclipse technologies. He is an eclipse committer and is responsible for the Xtext-framework and architect of the Xpand-language family (also known as openArchitectureWare).
Sven Efftinge regularly speaks at software conferences, writes professional articles and is co-author of the book “Modellgetriebene Softwareentwicklung”, (Model-Driven Software Development) (published at dpunkt-Verlag).
Heiko Behrens, Software Architect
Heiko Behrens works as a software architect for itemis AG in Kiel (Germany). In his 10 years of experience in the field of commercial software development he utilized a variety of different programming methodologies, languages and frameworks. His current focus is on domain-specific languages where he is involved with the design and implementation of Xtext. He is a commiter for the Eclipse Modeling Project and openArchitectureWare.