System and method for preloading classes in a data processing device that does not have a virtual memory manager

Abstract

An authoring system prepares a specified set of classes for preloading in client devices lacking a virtual memory manager. The authoring system converts the specified set of classes into a plurality of resource modules, a subset of the resource modules each including items that have pointers to items in other ones of the resource modules. The authoring system generates a load module, for loading into the client devices, that includes the plurality of resource modules, an interpreter and a startup procedure. The interpreter is for executing, on the client devices, programs in a predefined computer language. The specified set of classes includes methods in the predefined computer language. The startup procedure is for execution by the client devices when loading the interpreter for execution. The startup procedure replaces pointers in the resource modules with updated pointers in accordance with actual memory locations of the resource modules in any particular one of the client devices. The resource modules include a class table resource module, a method table resource module, a field table resource module, a constant pool resource module and a string resource module. The class data structure includes pointers to items in the method table, field table and constant pool resource modules, the field table resource module includes pointers to items in the string resource module, and the constant pool resource module includes pointers to items in the field table resource module and items in the string resource module.