Breaking the Silence: Auralization of Parallel Program Behavior

Abstract The run-time behavior of a parallel program is defined by many parameters, for example, the program′s communication structure, the processor utilization profile, and the dynamic size of message queues. To understand the execution of a program, it is frequently necessary for a programmer to consider the run-time behavior from a number of different angles. Also, it is sometimes useful to consider one aspect of the behavior in isolation, whereas other times it is necessary to consider different types of behavior together. Sound offers an alternative form of investigation to simply using multiple graphical and textual views for studying the behavior of a program. In this paper, we discuss the properties of parallel programs that are well suited to being mapped to sound and present a number of example mappings. As evidence of the effectiveness of the sound mappings, we present case studies based on a prototype sound tool. In general, sound was found to be effective in depicting certain patterns and timing information related to the programs′ behaviors. Also, by listening to sound representations that were sychronized with graphical displays, the speed of recognition and distinction of programs, and parts of programs, was increased.