Cuneus : an embeddable scripting framework based on a virtual machine paradigm

Abstract

Modern applications and systems have become increasingly complex, making customization and extensibility a necessity. Among the various methods used in customizing and extending applications, scripting frameworks are increasingly becoming the industry choice due to their elegance and flexibility. The Cuneus engine is a scripting framework based on the specification of a generic object oriented scripting language and the specification of a target bytecode. The implemented Cuneus compiler translates a subset of the scripting language specification into the bytecode representation. A typed register-based virtual machine has been developed that can execute the bytecode. The Cuneus virtual machine is designed for flexibility, efficiency and language independence. This virtual machine can be linked with an application, thus forming part of the final executable code. Interaction between the application and the virtual machine is possible. The application can expose and register native functions, objects and data through the engine's APL The Metadata can be synthesised either by the application or through the script. Once these are in place, a script can invoke native functions and access the registered components. A number of examples have been created in order to demonstrate these concepts.