A Framework for Comparing Type Systems for Database Programming Languages

Several proposals have been published in recent years for database programming languages (DBPLs), many of which have been object-oriented. Our goal in this paper is not to argue for or against specific solutions, but simply to provide a framework for comparing certain critical points of type system design. This framework may be used in the description of a DBPL. It is our hope that the framework will promote clear communication among designers and developers of DBPLs. 1 Introduction At the Second Object-Oriented Database Workshop [OO88], the first author posed a set of questions as a way of urging people to be clear when talking about types and/or classes. This brief paper expands on those questions in an effort to provide a framework for describing type systems that can be used to compare programming languages in a meaningful manner. We have divided the questions to be asked into five areas. The first is discussed in Section 2 and has to do with the nature of the type system. Section..