A tool for programming with interaction nets

Abstract

This paper introduces INblobs, a visual tool developed at Minho for integrated development with Interaction Nets. Most of the existing tools take as input interaction nets and interaction rules represented in a textual format. INblobs is first of all a visual editor that allows users to edit interaction systems (both interaction nets and interaction rules) graphically, and to convert them to textual notation. This can then be used as input to other tools that implement reduction of nets. INblobs also allows the user to reduce nets within the tool, and includes a mechanism that automatically selects the next active pair to be reduced, following one of the given reduction strategies. The paper also describes other features of the tool, such as the creation of rules from pre-defined templates.