Workflow, transactions and datalog
Anthony J. Bonner · 1999
Transaction Datalog (abbreviated TV) is a concurrent programming language that provides process modeling, database access, and advanced transactions.This paper illustrates the use of TV for specifying and simulating workflows, with examples based on the needs of a highthroughpnt genome laboratory.In addition to traditional database support, these needs include synchronization of work, cooperation between concurrent workflows, and nonserializable access to shared resources.After illustrating workflows, we use 7-1~ to explore their computational complexity in data-intensive applications.We show, for instance, that workflows can be vastly more complex than traditional database transactions, largely because concurrent processes can interact and communicate via the database (i.e., one process can read what another process writes).We then investigate the s,ources of this complexity, focusing on features for data modeling and process modeling.We show that by carefully controlling these features, the complexity of workflows can be reduced substantially.Finally, we develop a sub-language called fully bounded 'TV that provides a practical blend of modeling features while minimizing complexity.