Logic Programming languages for the Internet

Abstract

We specify the major characteristics of the Internet under the headings: heterogeneity, service characteristics, dynamic nature, no global notions, and unreliability (i.e. security and partial failure). In the process, we identify five categories of Internet services: hosts, active entities, agents, semistructured data, and passive code. Logic Programming (LP) languages for the Internet are divided into six broad groups: shared variables, coordination, message passing, clientside execution, server-side execution, and integration of heterogeneous data sources. Within each group we attempt to highlight the advantages and disadvantages for Internet programming in terms of our Internet characteristics and services, and describe LP languages that typify the group. © 2002 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.