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Conference turris::languages

Title:	Languages
Notice:	Speaking In Tongues
Moderator:	TLE::TOKLAS::FELDMAN

Created:	Sat Jan 25 1986
Last Modified:	Wed May 21 1997
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	394
Total number of notes:	2683

92.0. "Control Interface Language ?????" by CEDSWS::LINDSAY () Sun Jun 15 1986 23:19

    Has anyone heard of a "Control Interface Language (CIL)?"  I'm
    am currently working on one of those fun gov't spec's and they
    keep referencing this like it is a standard lanaguage.
    
    Here's a little bit of how it is used in context.
    
    "The primary functions provided by the Test Instrument Controller
     (TIC) are:
    	a.  Standardization of communications language and format on
    	    the IEEE bus
    	b.  Translation of the Control Interface Lnaguage (CIL) to
    	    instrument specific codes and formats
    
        .
        .
        .
    
     The communications interface between the Test Executive and
     the TIC shall be by standard CIL.  All commands from the test stand
     computer are transmitted using the CIL op codes and modifiers in
     7 bit ASCII.  Data values are coded in ASCII decimal scientific
     notation."  (what is that???) "All IEEE bus communications between
     the TIC and the main computer shall be terminated by a carriage
     return and line_feed."                        
        
    I would appreciate any help I could get on this one.  Thanks!
    
    Lisa

T.R	Title	User	Personal Name	Date	Lines
92.1	A Possible Source	LATOUR::RMEYERS	Randy Meyers	`Mon Jun 16 1986 19:16`	3
	I am not sure, but I believe the IEEE publishes a book on this. I seem to remember reading an advertisement for the manual in an IEEE list of publications (which I threw away, sorry!).
92.2	A little assistance	CADSYS::COOK	Neil	`Tue Jun 17 1986 02:00`	18
	>From .0 > The communications interface between the Test Executive and > the TIC shall be by standard CIL. All commands from the test stand > computer are transmitted using the CIL op codes and modifiers in > 7 bit ASCII. Data values are coded in ASCII decimal scientific > notation." (what is that???) "All IEEE bus communications between > the TIC and the main computer shall be terminated by a carriage > return and line_feed." An example of ASCII decimal scientific notation is 422357.325 E -23 which is just 422357.325 times 10 to the power -23. This can be normalized as 0.422357325 E -17 which is the same value with no significant digits before the decimal point. The CIL appears to just be a way of transmitting commands and responses in plain text. Sorry not to be of more help.
92.3	Command vs. Control	USRCV1::CARNELLP	Fanmail from some flounder	`Wed Jun 18 1986 04:20`	14
	NASA once had something they called Command Interface Language (I know it sounds like CLI but it wasn't the same think) that they used in ground control computers. It was supposed to have been developed by the Navy. Could your CIL be an outgrowth of this? CIL was more of a standard way of constructing an user interface than an implementation language. Most of the systems I worked with that used it were programmed in Macro-11. It was basically a standard method of defining satellite (or rocket, or washing machine) binary command sequences into english-like syllables. The idea was to turn these long binary strings into pseudo-words that operators could remember. Paul.