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Re: [gomp] Challenges in Implementing OpenMP
- From: Scott Robert Ladd <coyote at coyotegulch dot com>
- To: Gabriel Dos Reis <gdr at cs dot tamu dot edu>
- Cc: gcc mailing list <gcc at gcc dot gnu dot org>
- Date: Wed, 13 Oct 2004 17:45:34 -0400
- Subject: Re: [gomp] Challenges in Implementing OpenMP
- References: <416D5F62.1040508@coyotegulch.com> <m3oej648ul.fsf@merlin.cs.tamu.edu>
Gabriel Dos Reis wrote:
I apologize in advance for what might look like an unsolicited ad.
However, the topic raised by Scott concerns GCC, C++ and a domain I'm
interested in. All three reasons I feel concerned :-)
I was really hoping this wouldn't degenerate, like past discussions,
into a debate over the merits of OpenMP and its syntax. I am more than
willing to agree that there may be other (and even better) alternatives;
however, the issue here is how best to implement OpenMP.
OpenMP is a widely-recognized industry standard implemented successfully
by almost every commercial C, C++, and Fortran compiler (Microsoft is
adding it to Visual C++ in the next major release.) There exists a
significant body of OpenMP knowledge and code.
The view here at TAMU, is slightly different. Instead of augmenting
the language with CPP directives and whatnot that the programmer has
to manually keep track of, we prefer to realy on higher level
abstractions. That is the approach taken and implemented by STAPL
http://parasol.tamu.edu/compilers/research/STAPL/
I've worked a bit with STAPL, but it is a C++-only solution.
There is another project initiated by Bjarne Stroustrup, which I know
more about (certainly more than STAPL :-)), called "The Pivot".
Again, it is C++ only.
So, you can see my bias: Keep the compiler simple, delegate
domain-specific semantics to domain-specific tools; Keep the
abstraction high level, and delegate byte fiddling to the computer
scientists and equations to physisists/numericists.
Your bias is a focus only on C++. I write 70% of my code in C++, so I
sympathize. However, I also work with C and Fortran developers, and
OpenMP is the solution in their domains.
--
Scott Robert Ladd
site: http://www.coyotegulch.com
blog: http://chaoticcoyote.blogspot.com