A system and a machine-implemented method are provided. The system may include a platform, in which one or more application domains may be specified. At least some of the application domains may abstract a hardware device. Partitioning of the system into a number of independent applications with fixed public interfaces may provide each application domain with isolation, or protection, from other application domains. Application domains may be specified via programming language constructs. An application, within one application domain, may access a hardware device, or software, in another application domain via similar generic interfaces provided in a managed code environment enforced by the platform.