Contributions to theConstruction ofExtensibleSemanticEditors

This dissertation addresses the need for easier construction and extension of lan-guage tools. Specifically, the construction and extension of so-called semantic editors is considered, that is, editors providing semantic services for code compre-hension and manipulation. Editors like these are typically found in state-of-the-art development environments, where they have been developed by hand. The list of programming languages available today is extensive and, with the lively creation of new programming languages and the evolution of old languages, it keeps growing. Many of these languages would benefit from proper tool sup-port. Unfortunately, the development of a semantic editor can be a time-consuming and error-prone endeavor, and too large an effort for most language communities. Given the complex nature of programming, and the huge benefits of good tool sup-port, this lack of tools is problematic. In this dissertation, an attempt is made at narrowing the gap between generative solutions and how state-of-the-art editors are constructed today. A generative al