Projectional and/or structural editing have been around for decades to implement software languages with, but haven’t received nearly as much academic research attention as parsing-based techniques have. In this talk, I give an overview of the current state of the art of projectional editing, as well as its specific suitability for vertical business domains. Then I discuss why the field of software language engineering should give more attention to projectional editing and business-centric DSLs. In the process, I share some thoughts/hypotheses/observations which might be construed as controversial. As an aside, I also discuss whether GenAI could be used in combination with DSLs.

Meinte Boersma is a recovering mathematician, having completed a master thesis in number theory, but ending up in software development. Since almost two decades, he’s been working exclusively on model-driven software development and language engineering, with a focus towards business-centric DSLs. He does so as an independent consultant for various companies and governmental institutions. He has worked at the Dutch Tax and Customs Agency, creating DSLs to bridge the gap between lawpeople and IT. More recently, he has designed and implemented an EU COVID-related cross-border entry regulations standard. His book “Building User-Friendly DSLs” with Manning Publications is out since this October.