ZOO is built based on the following:
MOOSE:
Object-oriented data model
FOX:
Declarative object-oriented query language on Moose schemas
The system itself consists of the following six main modules:
EMU:
Experimentation manager
FROG:
Visual tool for specifying mappings between Moose objects and Ascii files
HORSE:
Object-oriented database server based on Moose and Fox
OPOSSUM:
Visual manager of Moose schemas (and schemas in other models or even generic
graphs)
SQUID:
SQUID : Visual manager of Fox queries
TURTLE:
Translator between Moose objects and Ascii files
The development of many of these modules proceeds in stages, each stage supporting a larger part of the Moose model and/or the Fox language. All modules are currently under construction, each one being at a different stage of implementation. Our current (revised) plan calls for the following schedule regarding releases of the above modules:
March 99:
Horse - full Moose model except inheritance, flat Fox on complex objects
(tuple and sets), with scientific workflow capabilities
Turtle - complex objects (tuple and sets)
Emu - complete functionality
All interface will be textual
September 99:
Horse - complete flat Fox
February 00:
Horse - complete Fox
Opossum - specialized for dealing with large schema graphs
Squid - visual language equivalent to flat Fox
May 00:
Opossum - complete functionality on arbitrary models
Squid - visual language equivalent to complete Fox
Frog - complex objects (tuple and sets)
September 00:
Frog - complete functionality on all of Moose
Application modules realizing various research issues,
like conversational queries, approximate query answers,
complex data visualization
In addition to the modules mentioned above with each date, new versions of previously released modules will be made available each time as well.
Every release will include (a) the released modules, (b) documentation that will explain how the code must be installed and how it can be used by end-users or application programs (depending on the module), (c) example application modules that can either be used as actual tools or as examples of the capabilities of the released modules.
Our intention is to eventually make ZOO available on all the major hardware and software platforms. The first releases, however, will be for Sun Sparcs and/or PC-Pentiums both under Solaris. Releases for Windows, NT, and other operating systems will follow.