AVal: an extensible attribute‐oriented programming validator for Java

Attribute‐oriented programming (@OP) permits programmers to extend the semantics of a base program by annotating it with attributes defined in an attribute domain‐specific language (AttDSL). In this article, we propose AVal: a Java5 framework for the definition and checking of rules for @OP in Java. We define a set of meta‐annotations to allow the validation of @OP programs, as well as the means to extend these meta‐annotations by using a compile‐time model of the program's source code. AVal is fully integrated into the Eclipse IDE. We show the usefulness of the approach by using examples of its use applied to three AttDSLs: an @OP framework that helps programming Simple API for XML parsers, an @OP extension for the Fractal component model called Fraclet, and the JSR 181 for web services definition. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.