IDL (Interface Definition Language) is a specification language used to describe the interface of software components, defining how they can communicate with each other. It's commonly used in Remote Procedure Call (RPC) software to generate the necessary code for different programming languages to call the remote procedures - because writing all that glue code yourself would be a real pain, amirite?

How to use it in a sentence

• I was trying to get my microservices talking to each other, but then I remembered I forgot to define the IDL (Interface Definition Language) - rookie mistake!

• My boss told me to stop procrastinating and write the IDL (Interface Definition Language) for our new API, but I'd rather be refactoring my side project's YAML config files.

If you actually want to learn more...

• Language Workbenches: The Killer-App for Domain Specific Languages? - Martin Fowler dives into the world of language workbenches and how they enable the creation and use of IDLs and other domain-specific languages. Prepare for some seriously geeky stuff.

• Domain Specific Languages - In this article, Martin Fowler explains the concept of domain-specific languages, including IDLs, and how they differ from general-purpose programming languages. He also touches on the age-old debate of internal vs external DSLs (thrilling, I know).

• The Rise and Fall of CORBA - This ACM Queue article takes a nostalgic look back at CORBA, one of the most well-known uses of IDLs in the history of distributed computing. It's a bit like reminiscing about your first programming language, but with more enterprise-y buzzwords.

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