Organizational Information Systems Design and Implementation with Contextual Constraint Logic Programming
Abstract
In this article we claim that Contextual Constraint Logic Programming (CCxLP for short) is a powerful paradigm in which to design and implement Organizational Information Systems, particularly when integrated with the ISCO/ISTO mediator framework. We briefly introduce the language and its underlying paradigm, assessing it from the angle of its antecedents: Logic and Object-Oriented Programming. To further the point, we focus on the use of implicit temporal information in ISTO and show how this formalism can be used to enhance expres-siveness. An implementation has been developed which is being actively used in a real-world setting-Universidade dé Evora's second generation web-based Academic Information System, which we briefly report on. We conclude that the risks taken in adopting a developing technology such as this for a mission-critical system has paid off, in terms of both development ease and flexibility as well as in maintenance requirements .