Towards Type-Based Optimizations in Distributed Applications Using ABS and JAVA 8

In this paper we present an API to support modeling applications with Actors based on the paradigm of the Abstract Behavioural Specification (ABS) language. With the introduction of JAVA 8, we expose this API through a JAVA library to allow for a high-level actor-based methodology for programming distributed systems which supports the programming to interfaces discipline. We validate this solution through a case study where we obtain significant performance improvements as well as illustrating the ease with which simple high and low-level optimizations can be obtained by examining topologies and communication within an application. Using this API we show it is much easier to observe drawbacks of shared data-structures and communications methods in the design phase of a distributed application and apply the necessary corrections in order to obtain better results