DiSTiL is an application of Don Batory’s design ideas (GenVoca framework) on IP. GenVoca is a general paradigm for generator design. If a generator is to succeed, the domain of its application has to be narrow and well-defined. If we find a narrow, well-defined domain that is widely used, we get a story of big generator success (YACC is an excellent example). The domain we chose to demonstrate our ideas, is that of container data structures. This is a domain that everyone understands which presents all of the key features (domain-specific optimizations, parameterization, etc.) we want to demonstrate.

These idea have been applied to domains as diverse as databases, network protocols, file systems and avionics software.