International Business Machines Corporation

Paul W Buenger

Cary Lee Bates

Steven Gene Halverson

Vadim Berestetsky

An electronic device is provided that, in an embodiment, saves a plurality of values for a variable specified by a condition after a respective plurality of encounters of a breakpoint by a program that modifies the variable. One of the plurality of values is selected based on a condition. A determination is made whether to stop execution of the program at the breakpoint based on the one of the plurality of the values. Execution of the program is stopped at the breakpoint if the determining is true. The program is allowed to continue to execute if the determining is false.

Managing breakpoints in a multi-threaded environment

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment issue a warning if a file to be used is an older version. In an embodiment, the warning includes an identification of the location of a newer version of the file. In an embodiment, the file is a class, and the old and new versions are found using a classpath, but in other embodiments any type of file or other object may be used. In this way, the use of incorrect versions of files may be detected and avoided.

Detecting incorrect versions of files

A storage medium that, in an embodiment, determines whether to stop execution of a program at a breakpoint based on a previous value of a variable. In another embodiment, an attribute is applied to all breakpoints in a breakpoint group. The attribute includes data that is used to decide whether to halt the program upon encountering the breakpoints or allow the program to continue to execute. In another embodiment, breakpoints are excluded or included on the basis of the thread in which the breakpoint is encountered by the program.

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment find all those breakpoints that meet a selection criteria and add the breakpoints to a breakpoint group. In various embodiments, the selection criteria may be a condition criteria, a hierarchy criteria, or a skipping criteria. In this way, the programmer is freed from needing to individually add breakpoints to the group and all the breakpoints in the group may be enabled, disabled, or removed as a group.

Grouping breakpoints by a criteria

A conditional breakpoint for debugging computer programming code includes a condition identifying of one or more expected code paths used to reach the breakpoint. The breakpoint is triggered if it is reached during execution using an unexpected code path. Preferably, an expected code path is identified by specifying the expected preceding breakpoint, by specifying basic code blocks which should or should not be encountered before the breakpoint, or some combination thereof. The expected code path condition may be used alone or in conjunction with any conventional breakpoint condition.

Method and apparatus for breakpoint analysis of computer programming code using unexpected code path conditions

A development environment tracks code sections which have been copied and pasted into a code module from a source code section which has not been subjected to certain verifications. In one aspect, if an error in a copied section is later found during a verification process, the programmer is allowed to perform a multi-edit operation, whereby an edited change to a single copy is automatically propagated to multiple copies. In another aspect, the programmer is warned when copying and pasting a code section which has not been verified. Preferably, verification is performed in the process of compiling source into executable object code.

Efficiently developing encoded instructions by tracking multiple unverified instances of repetitive code segments

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment verify that if a selected first link in a first page points to a reciprocal site, then a reciprocal link in a reciprocal page points back to the first page. The verification is performed by finding the reciprocal page and searching it for the reciprocal link. If the reciprocal link does not exist, then in various embodiments, the first link is removed or is removed after a time period has elapsed or a number of times has been exceeded, or a user is warned of the lack of the reciprocal link. In this way, reciprocal links are tracked to verify that the first page is receiving the agreed-upon links.

Reciprocal link tracking

Method and apparatus for efficiently developing encoded instructions by tracking multiple unverified instances of repetitive code segments

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment determine whether to stop execution of a program at a breakpoint based on a previous value of a variable. In another embodiment, an attribute is applied to all breakpoints in a breakpoint group. The attribute includes data that is used to decide whether to halt the program upon encountering the breakpoints or allow the program to continue to execute. In another embodiment, breakpoints are excluded or included on the basis of the thread in which the breakpoint is encountered by the program.

Method, apparatus and article of manufactured for debugging code. A user selects a function call (e.g., a method of object-oriented code) and a debugger parses the function call and sets breakpoints on the entry points of all instances of the method (assuming more than one). During execution, when one of the breakpoints is hit, the debugger determines whether the corresponding method is being called from the user-specified location in the code.

Run into function

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment create breakpoint groups and breakpoints in a hierarchical tree structure. An operation directed to a breakpoint group is performed on both the breakpoint group and the descendents in the tree of the breakpoint group. But, an operation directed to a descendent is not performed against its ancestors. In this way, the user can ore easily organize, enable, and disable breakpoints.

Hierarchical breakpoint groups

A method, apparatus, system, and signal-bearing medium that in an embodiment, determine the control flow relationship between breakpoints and graphically display this relationship. Breakpoints are added to a breakpoint group based on their position within the control flow of a program. In an embodiment, when a control flow construct is selected in the graphical display, the breakpoints associated with the control flow construct are added to a breakpoint group.

Growing community of inventors

Eau Claire, WI, United States of America

Paul W Buenger