The Howdy Glossary

Concurrent ML (CML) is an extended version of the standard ML programming language that incorporates features for concurrent and distributed programming. It facilitates event-driven programming and introduces synchronous message-passing channels, allowing developers to synchronize processes effectively. This approach helps avoid issues such as race conditions and deadlocks commonly encountered in multi-threaded systems by eliminating the need for shared state concurrency.

Developed by John H. Reppy in the early 1990s at Cornell University, CML was designed to enable efficient and robust development of concurrent and distributed systems through its unique language constructs. It promotes clear communication patterns between various program components, making it easier to reason about system behavior, which aids in debugging and performance optimization efforts. By focusing on synchronous message passing channels, CML provides a structured way to handle interactions among processes without relying on shared state.

CML distinguishes itself from other concurrent programming languages like Erlang, Go, and Akka through its specific design choices. While Erlang utilizes the actor model for fault tolerance and distribution, Go simplifies concurrency with lightweight threads called goroutines. Akka focuses on building highly concurrent applications using supervision strategies within the JVM environment. In contrast, CML emphasizes event-driven programming with explicit communication semantics via synchronous message passing channels. These features make CML particularly suitable for developers aiming to build maintainable, robust concurrent systems that are easy to optimize and reason about systematically.