Exceptions in Java']Java and Eiffel: Two extremes in exception design and application

Exceptions are frequently a controversial language feature with both language designers and programmers. Exceptions are controversial because they complicate language semantics----and thus program design, testing, and verification----and some programmers find them annoying or difficult to use properly. By examining two programming languages that have very different, even opposing, exception mechanisms, a set of exception principles is introduced that summarize the key semantic and social issues surrounding exceptions.