On Inverse Of Compiling 2

7. SUMMARY

A decompiler model has been described which was implemented and which achieved a relatively high figure of merit. There are, however, many fundamental problems which remain to be solved before decompilation can be considered as a generally accepted method of conversion. Why has there been no solution to these problems? Admittedly, they are very complex, but there has been very little visible evidence of any concerted effort to solve them. A glance at the attached bibliography contains only a few expositions on the techniques. No published account of a commercial decompiler is to be found within the last ten years [21].

The most recent survey of conversion techniques [13] indicates that a general solution for decompilation, will not be seen within five years (from 1978). This seems optimistic considering the amount of published material on the subject. The problems remaining cannot be solved without a firm foundation which goes far beyond that which now exists.

The problems which remain to be solved are not unique to decompilation as a conversion tool. They appear in all aspects of software development from definition and design through maintenance and evolution of systems.

With the explosion of hardware technology during the last decade and that predicted for the next, and with the predicted shortage of software professionals, conversion aids and portability will become increasingly important, if not imperative, for the advancement of software development.

Innovation by major computer vendors is seriously threatened by the monumental conversion process required of its customer base that new hardware and software systems have been canceled short of implementation or release. All the while, more machine dependent software is produced by computer vendors, users, and software houses. The cost of a solution is high -- the cost to do business without a solution is even higher.

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