DYNA Fall 2025

As the landscape changes, so must the road map. Morten opens DYNA Fall 2025 with an overview of where we are and where we are heading.

AI is evolving rapidly, but APL support is lagging behind that of some of the more mainstream programming languages, such as Python. Stefan outlines the work that is being done at Dyalog Ltd to ameliorate this situation, including Model Context Protocol (MCP) to connect a Large Language Model (LLM) to a running application, smart documentation search, client libraries, and more.

Jarvis is Dyalog's APL-based API framework that enables developers to expose APL functionality as web services and APIs. Whether you're building microservices, creating RESTful APIs, or exposing computational services, Jarvis provides the tools to make your APL code accessible over HTTP. Brian introduces JAWS (Jarvis and web sockets), with which Jarvis can provide asynchronous delivery of services, making it even more flexible.

Apache Kafka is an open-source distributed event-streaming platform for processing real-time data streams in a fast, reliable, and scalable way. It allows you to build high-performance data pipelines and streaming apps. Martina presents the new Dyalog interface to Kafka, written in APL and C, and demonstrates the fundamentals for developing a Kafka-based application in Dyalog.

Aaron introduces the work that’s being done at Dyalog Ltd to provide static analysis tools for users of APL that should improve tooling, assist in code refactoring, and aid migrations. He discusses the security and static analysis tool built on Co-dfns that will be available as an independent tool targeting security and code quality audits, as well as how you can use Co-dfns to integrate static analysis into existing tools.

METSIM® is the leading chemical and mineral processing plant simulation software used by engineers and operators around the globe. Since 1982, all development has taken place using APL+Win, which served their products and our customers well. However, the environment in which all industries are operating has evolved, and improvements became necessary; Dyalog was selected as the replacement system to provide the tools and expertise in-house to ensure that METSIM continues to meet customer demands. For the last 18 months, teams from MSI and Dyalog Ltd have worked together and successfully converted the METSIM source code to the Dyalog platform without losing any key features. Alex describes the conversion process, examining issues such as moving from Microsoft Windows-specific APIs and UI to cross-platform tools that will also support Linux, without rewriting the application. He also discusses the planned source-code improvements, and the external APIs that will expand MSI’s product offerings.

Buyers Intelligence Group (BIG) provides inventory analysis services for thousands of jewellery manufacturers and retailers. By integrating with a wide variety of point-of-sale and other systems, BIG provides analysis tools to help its clients improve inventory turnover. Although the web front end is written using industry standard components such as ASP.NET, MSSQL, JavaScript, and KendoUI, much of the back end is written using Dyalog and its myriad of tools and interfaces.

Dyalog enables BIG to react quickly to changing needs and provide custom solutions tailored to individual clients. Mark introduced us to BIG's use of Dyalog in his presentations at Dyalog '22 and Dyalog '23. He now updates us on how BIG's use of Dyalog and its tools has continued to grow, and how they are actively exploring AI integration to push their capabilities further.

Data science is one of the most influential areas of technology today. From statistical analyses to machine learning and laying the foundation for many AI systems, its use is becoming increasingly widespread. APL appears to be a natural candidate for the problems encountered in this space. Josh looks at where and how APL can be used as a solution.

Representing hierarchical data structures (trees) with vectors is trendy in some parts of the APL world, but just how useful is it? Asher introduces the basic tree-wrangling operations and walks through some case studies, exploring why we should (or shouldn't!) be using this technique.

Holden introduces ArrayLab, a simple 3D game built entirely in APL using the raylibAPL library (which makes the C library raylib available to the APL programmer on all platforms). He explains the development process, including how raylib-apl manages graphics, input, and game logic, and highlights the potential of APL as a platform for creating 3D games.

Are you passionate about growing the next generation of APLers? Do you have ideas for innovative projects that showcase the power of APL in science, engineering, or mathematics, but lack the funding to bring them to life?

Diane introduces The APL Trust, a non-profit scientific charity dedicated to supporting projects that promote global awareness and meaningful use of the APL programming language, and explains how the Trust can help turn your ideas into impactful initiatives that advance education and technical excellence through APL.