Completely automated software holds the promise to revamp the entire field of computer science. In this proposal an All People Programming Language (APPL) is developed based on the software. By completely eliminating the learning curve and the updating cost, permanently, APPL would allow people of the world over the age of six to write software, which will never become obsolete.
The objective of this research is to explore the ultimate question and the unsolved technical problem of complete automation, starting with software. The completely automated software will make obsolete partially automated software, which characterizes all the current software, except one, namely, DNA of the living system. In fact, the first demonstration system [Ref. 1] of the completely automated software bears a remarkable resemblance to DNA. In the software, all the executable programs, which correspond to proteins, are generated by feeding the integer-like source code, which corresponds to RNA, into the program generator, which corresponds to ribosome. As the biological cell, the software can self-generate to infinity. This research will initiate a human expedition into the completely automated software, exemplified by DNA, which contains the intelligence of the universe accumulated from the infinite past.
The English-like source code performs the dual functions as a mnemonics to the user and as instructions to the computer. The dual functions are split up in the completely automated software. The function of a mnemonics is achieved by a human-language Universal User Interface, which eliminates the learning curve and is the familiar tree-structured, numerical multiple-choice question format, incorporating human associative memory for the unlimited access of information. The sole function of instructing the computer is achieved by an integer-like Universal Computer Source Code, which, through completely automatic updating, eliminates completely the updating cost, which takes up the bulk of the software budget. A self-generation capability allows the continual improvement of the Universal User Interface. Auto-documentation allows the improvement of the explanation of Universal Computer Source Code. The third innovation, Universal Data File, allows the generation of an instruction generating instruction.
Self-generation and auto-updating have been demonstrated in a completely automated software system by the Principal Investigator. The research will be a collaborative effort among Northwestern Polytechnic University and Post-Science Institute, contributing the technical and theoretical support, Richard Stallman of the Free Software Foundation, contributing the view of the practitioner, and C. V. Ramamoorthy, contributing his life-time software knowledge with the view of the academic community.
Intellectual Merit: This research will create a new completely automated foundation for software to replace the existing partially automated foundation. The completely automated software attempts to put computer science on the same completely automated foundation of life science. Transformative Potential: Personal Computer software has eliminated most technical barriers of the first generation software, but left its own artificial standard, which exists as technical barriers to help software developers make money from continual updates. This research will eliminate this last technical barrier by replacing the artificial standard with a natural standard based on complete automation. Broader Impact: This research will impact, in addition to the software community, the entire world population by allowing everyone to program a computer. Eliminating the technical barriers in computer usage, the software will increase productivity and contribute to world-wide, permanent, full employment.
3. Hugh Ching "Completely Automated And Self-generating Software System" (Pat. No. 5,485,601)