XSB: An Overview of its Use and Implementation

Several features of the XSB Logic Programming System make it suitable as a database engine including: its foundation on SLG resolution, its efficiency for memory-resident queries, and its flexibility for for data modelling. SLG resolution is a goal-directed resolution strategy that uses memoing and delay to compute the well-founded semantics for general programs. In doing so, XSB eliminates problems with literal ordering and with redundant computations so common when languages like Prolog are used for data-oriented applications. XSB extends the WAM (Warren Abstract Machine)[31] to implement SLG resolution. The implementation has been completed for (modularly) stratified programs, and comparisons indicate that XSB is significantly faster than other deductive database systems for a wide range of queries. XSB offers advanced facilities for data modelling as well. All interfaces of XSB syntax supports HiLog [2] syntax. HiLog predicates are compiled, and execute at speeds only slightly less..