SSaaPP - SpreadSheets as a Programming Paradigm

Spreadsheet tools can be viewed as programming environments for non-professional programmers. These so-called “end-user” programm ers vastly outnumber professional programmers. In fact, spreadsheets, when viewed as a programming language, are one of the largest programming languages and can be characterized as a particularly low-level one: there is no support for abstraction, testing, encapsulation, modular or structured programming. As a result, numerous studies have shown that existing spreadsheets contain errors at an alarmingly high rate. In fact, companies are being put at risk due to their failure to realise that the process of constructing spreadsheets requires the discipline of traditional programming. Spreadsheet applications are more vulnerable to poor design and to errors than conventional programs. This means that a greater degree of discipline is required in the process of spreadsheet development.

Research Team

MSc Students

Jorge Mendes (start: October 2011)

Hugo Ribeiro (start: November 2010, finish: December 2011)

Christophe Peixoto (start: November 2010, finish: December 2011)

Consultants

Industrial Partners

This work is funded by the ERDF through the Programme COMPETE and by the Portuguese Government through FCT - Foundation for Science and Technology, project ref. PTDC/EIA-CCO/108613/2008.