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A system for solving a wide variety of inverse and optimization problems in solid mechanics is introduced. The system consists of a general purpose finite element method (FEM) analysis system “Elfen” and a shell which controls this system. The shell functions as a stand‐alone programme, so the system is physically divided into two separated parts. The “optimization part”, which corresponds to the shell, possesses optimization and inverse problem solution algorithms. The “analysis part”, which corresponds to an FEM system, serves for the definition of the objective function to which these algorithms are applied. The shell has a user interface implemented in the form of file interpreter which imposes a great flexibility at the definition of various optimization and inverse problems, including parameter identification in constitutive modelling, frictional contact problems and heat transfer. Concepts of the shell are discussed in detail.

The Java programming language supports the concept of downloadable executable content; a key technology in a wide range of emerging applications including collaborative systems, electronic commerce, and Web information services. Java enables the execution of a program, on almost any modern computer regardless of hardware configuration and operating system. Safe‐Tcl was proposed as an executable content type of MIME and thus as the standard language for executable contents within e‐mail messages. However, the ability to download, integrate, and execute code from a remote computer, provided by both Java and Safe‐Tcl, introduces serious security risks since it enables a malicious remote program to obtain unauthorised access to the downloading system’s resources. In this paper, the two proposed security models are described in detail and the efficiency and flexibility of current implementations are evaluated in a comparative manner. Finally, upcoming extensions are discussed.

Despite the rapid growth in the implementation of sophisticated software‐based control systems, today’s process industries still rely heavily on sensors and associated conditioning electronics to provide accurate data from the processes. While most instrumentation manufacturers have focused their attention on products and system software beyond such front end signal conditioning, Status Instruments have decided to invest in the design of a highly versatile front end conditioning module which can be adapted to meet an ever increasing number of applications simply by downloading a new piece of software from their Web site.

In their effort to rebuild the society of the host-nation, military organizations depend on collaboration and communication with other international contingents and the local population. Language understanding in this regard is of eminent importance. Linguistic skills and the intervention of interpreters could contribute to the inter-communicational process, and hence positively affect the general effectiveness of the mission as a whole. In this article theoretical concepts and notions are illustrated with empirical observations from everyday military practice during peace-support operations. The article concludes with avenues for future research.

A simplified command line reader suitable for building interactive programs based on Fortran 77 is presented. The reader is a 20:1 condensation of the comprehensive command language interpreter CLIP that supports the NICE integrated software system. The present reader, called TinyCLIP. has been prepared to illustrate basic elements of command‐driven programming for beginners interested in writing Fortran‐based interactive applications software. The reader is table driven. Data lines given to the reader are parsed into items which are stored in a table. The table can be subsequently accessed by the program that processes the commands. Tools for extending the basic language are briefly discussed and specific extensions suggested.

This paper presents the architecture for a new finite element program written in the C⁺⁺ programming language. A powerful command interpreter allows the user not only to introduce data, but also to define the algorithms that will treat this data to obtain the desired results. In this way, the program can be very easily configured to new computational strategies. By following an object‐oriented programming technique, we expect the program would not fall into the “stagnation” state that affects large finite element codes currently in use.

More than 100 engineers and researchers from industry and from government and academic laboratories met in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in September at the Fourth World Conference on Robotics Research, sponsored by Robotics International of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers.

The present paper describes a Fortran library FLIPP constituting a run‐time environment that is linked to scientific applications software (such as finite‐element analysis programs) to support programming of interactive program control and use of persistent user‐defined dynamic data structures. The system consists of control and data definition and manipulation subsystems. The FLIPP routines are fully‐portable standard Fortran 77 procedures and the use of FLIPP leads the programmer to information hiding, e.g. as in object‐oriented systems. Program design and maintenance are facilitated to a considerable degree, while at the same time the performance of the programs using the FLIPP system remains fairly good as demonstrated by the examples.

Librarians and information specialists are commonly faced with problems related to the transfer and exchange of data. As intermediaries between information producers and end‐users, we are often called on to collect and package data in a meaningful and presentable fashion. Common tasks involve filtering data to remove a carriage return or line feed character, or reformatting text to produce more readable end products. Tasks of this type often require short utility programs, most often written in Basic. This article presents an overview of the Rexx language and a sample utility program to illustrate the advantages of the Rexx language as an alternative to Basic.

The promoters of PC Expo claimed that 50,000 attendees would crowd the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City for the September 1–3 show. Hordes of “volume buyers” (corporate computer honchos) and “computer resellers” (computer dealers of various stripes) were to fill the aisles.