Existing tools require end-user programmers (EUPs) to write regular expressions ("regexps") or even scripts to validate textual inputs, which is slow and error-prone. We present a new technique enabling EUPs to describe data as a series of constrained parts. We incorporate this technique into a prototype tool called Toped, which generates validation code for Excel and web forms. This technique enables EUPs to validate data more quickly and accurately than with existing techniques, finding 90% of invalid inputs in a lab study. Keywords End-user programming, spreadsheets, web applications ACM Classification Keywords D.2.6 [Programming Environments]: Interactive environments
Christopher Scaffidi, Brad A. Myers, Mary Shaw