On concurrent programming

by Fred B. Schneider

Much software today is structured as concurrent programs. This graduate-level text offers a self-contained and in-depth treatment of the subject. Formal methods and assertional reasoning drive the exposition. Not only are derivation and reasoning about concurrent programs discussed, but the assertional approach provides a compelling way to motivate and understand the more traditional concerns in concurrent programming: synchronization and communication mechanisms; protocols to solve key concurrent programming problems. As befits an introductory text, readers are provided with a good account of the basics: propositional and predicate logic, temporal logic, and a Hoare-style logic for sequential programs. Exercises at the end of each chapter extend and illustrate the main themes. The result is a book that should be invaluable to those interested in concurrent programming.