Abstract

In a computer system, an improved tool and method for debugging complex computer applications, displays the relationship between processes and resources of the processes and the contents of the stack and registers for threads of processes. Double clicking on the displayed information causes more detailed information to be displayed. The display is updated when predetermined operations are performed during debug. Debug commands are accepted by the tool through a graphical user interface using operations performed by the user directly on the graphical representation of the functions of the software application. The ability of the tool to accept user commands through the graphical user interface and to display critical debugging information using this same interface greatly facilitates debugging. The displayed information includes graphical information representing currently executing processes and their resources and further representing threads of the currently executing processes.

Other References

• Article by Colin Gerety, entitled "A New Generation of Software Development Tools" Hewlett-Packard Journal, pp. 48-58 Jun. 1980
• Article by Michael B. Davis, entitled "A Layout Algorithm for a Graph Browser" published by EECS Department University of California, Berkeley, pp. 1-47, May 9, 1985
• Article by Lawrence A. Rowe et al. entitled "A Browser for Directed Graphs" published by EECS Department, University of California, Berkeley, pp. 1-22, Mar. 25, 1986
• Article by Sugiyama et al. entitled "Methods for Visual Understanding of Hierarchical System Structures" IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, vol. SMC-11, No. 2, pp. 109-125, Feb. 1981
• Article by Salvatore R. Mangano entitled "Algorithms for Directed Graphs", Dr. Dobb's Journal, pp. 92-97, 106, 107, and 147, Apr. 1994
• Article by R.S. Side et al. entitled "A Debugger for Distributed Programs" Software-Practice and Experienced, vol. 24(5), pp. 507-525, May 1994
• Article by Adam Beguelin et al. entitled "Visualization and Debugging in a Heterogeneous Environment" IEEE, Computer, pp. 88-95, Jun. 1993
• Article by John Hopcroft et al. entitled "Efficient Planarity Testing" Journal of the Association for Computing Machinery, vol. 21, No. 4, pp. 549-567, Oct. 1974
• Article published by BBN Systems and Technologies, "The TotalView Debugger," Sep. 11, 1993, pp. 2-8
• Operations Management Product Description for Flow Map, bearing copyright date of 1994
• Microsoft Windows Benutzerhandbuch', 1992 pp. 78-79
• IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, vol. 36, No. 8, (Aug. 1993) p. 331, XP 000390242, "Graphical Monitoring of an Executing Application.
• Proceedings on the Pacific Rim Conference on Communications, Competitors and Signal Processing, Victoria (Jun. 1989) IEEE pp. 265-268, XP 000077481, "DPD: A Distributed Program Debugger for the REM Environment