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Wrote some tutorials
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@@ -12,10 +12,11 @@ The host will provide all of the extensions needed on a case-by-case basis. Scri
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* Simple C-like syntax
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* Bytecode intermediate compilation
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* `import` and `export` variables from the host program
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* Optional, but robust type system
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* functions and types are first-class citizens
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* `import` and `export` variables from the host program
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* Fancy slice notation for strings, arrays and dictionaries
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* Can re-direct output, error and assertion failure messages
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* Open source under the zlib license
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# Getting Started
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@@ -23,6 +24,8 @@ The host will provide all of the extensions needed on a case-by-case basis. Scri
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* [Quick Start Guide](quick-start-guide)
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* Tutorials
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* [Embedding Toy](embedding-toy)
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* [Compiling Toy](compiling-toy)
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* [Using Toy](using-toy)
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* ~~[Standard Libary](standard-library)~~
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* [Types](types)
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* [Developing Toy](developing-toy)
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98
compiling-toy.md
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98
compiling-toy.md
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# Compiling Toy
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This tutorial is a sub-section of [Using-Toy](using-toy) that has been spun off into it's own page for the sake of brevity/sanity. It's recommended that you read the main article first.
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The exact phases outline here are entirely implementation-dependent - that is, they aren't required, and are simply how the canonical version of Toy works.
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## How the Compilation works
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There are four main phases to running a Toy source file. These are:
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```
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lexing -> parsing -> compiling -> interpreting
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```
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Each phases has a dedicated set of functions and structures, and there are intermediate structures between these stages that carry the information from one set to another.
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```
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source -> lexer -> token
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token -> parser -> AST
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AST -> compiler -> bytecode
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bytecode -> interpreter -> result
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```
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## Lexer
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Exactly how the source code is loaded into memory is left up to the user, however once it's loaded, it can be bound to a `Lexer` structure.
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```c
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Lexer lexer;
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initLexer(&lexer, source);
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```
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The lexer, when invoked, will produce a break down the string of characters into individual `Tokens`.
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The lexer does not need to be freed after use, however the source code does.
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## Parser
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The `Parser` structure takes a `Lexer` as an argument when initialized.
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```c
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Parser parser;
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initParser(&parser, &lexer);
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ASTNode* node = scanParser(&parser);
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freeParser(&parser);
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```
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The parser takes tokens, one at a time, and converts them into structures called Abstract Syntax Trees, or ASTs for short. Each AST represents a single top-level statement within the Toy script. You'll know when the parser is finished when `scanParser()` begins returning `NULL` pointers.
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The AST Nodes produced by `scanParser()` must be freed manually, and the parser itself should not be used again.
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## Compiler
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The actual compilation phase has two steps - instruction writing and collation.
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```c
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size_t size;
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Compiler compiler;
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initCompiler(&compiler);
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writeCompiler(&compiler, node);
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unsigned char* tb = collateCompiler(&compiler, &size);
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freeCompiler(&compiler);
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```
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The writing step is the process in which AST nodes are compressed into bytecode instructions, while literal values are extracted and placed aside in a cache (usually in an intermediate state).
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The collation phase, however is when the bytecode instructions, along with the now flattened intermediate literals and function bodies are combined. The bytecode header specified in [Developing Toy](developing-toy) is placed at the beginning of this blob of bytes during this step.
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The Toy bytecode (abbreviated to `tb`), along with the `size` variable indicating the size of the bytecode, are the result of the compilation.
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This bytecode can be saved into a file for later consumption by the host at runtime - ensure that the file has the `.tb` extension.
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The bytecode loaded in memory is consumed and freed by `runInterpreter()`.
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## Interpreter
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The interpreter acts based on the contents of the bytecode given to it.
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```c
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Interpreter interpreter;
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initInterpreter(&interpreter);
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runInterpreter(&interpreter, tb, size);
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freeInterpreter(&interpreter);
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```
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Exactly how it accomplishes this task is up to it - as long as the result matches expectations.
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## REPL
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An example program, called `toyrepl`, is provided alongside Toy's core. This program can handle many things, such as loading, compiling and executing Toy scripts; it's capable of compiling any valid Toy program for later use, even those that rely on non-standard libraries.
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To get a list of options, run `toyrepl -h`.
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@@ -27,17 +27,3 @@ There are some strict rules when interpreting these values (mimicking, but not c
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All interpreter implementations retain the right to reject any bytecode whose header data does not conform to the above specification.
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The latest version information can be found in [common.h](https://github.com/Ratstail91/Toy/blob/0.6.0/source/common.h#L7-L10)
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## Embedded API
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The functions intended for usage by the API are prepended with the C macro `TOY_API`. The exact value of this macro can vary by platform, or even be empty.
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In addition, the macros defined in [literal.h](https://github.com/Ratstail91/Toy/blob/0.6.0/source/literal.h) are available for use when manipulating literals. These include:
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* `IS_*` - check if a literal is a specific type
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* `AS_*` - use the literal as a specific type
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* `TO_*` - create a literal of a specific type
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* `IS_TRUTHY` - check if a literal is truthy
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* `MAX_STRING_LENGTH` - the maximum length of a string in Toy (can be altered if needed)
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When you create a new Literal object, be sure to call `freeLiteral()` on it afterwards! If you don't, your program will leak memory as Toy has no internal tracker for such things.
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96
using-toy.md
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using-toy.md
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# Using Toy
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This tutorial assumes that you've managed to embed Toy into your program by following the tutorial [Embedding Toy](embedding-toy).
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Here, we'll look at some ways in which you can utilize Toy's C API within your host program.
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Be ware that when you create a new Literal object, you must call `freeLiteral()` on it afterwards! If you don't, your program will leak memory as Toy has no internal tracker for such things.
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## Embedded API Macros
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The functions intended for usage by the API are prepended with the C macro `TOY_API`. The exact value of this macro can vary by platform, or even be empty. In addition, the macros defined in [literal.h](https://github.com/Ratstail91/Toy/blob/0.6.0/source/literal.h) are available for use when manipulating literals. These include:
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* `IS_*` - check if a literal is a specific type
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* `AS_*` - cast the literal to a specific type
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* `TO_*` - create a literal of a specific type
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* `IS_TRUTHY` - check if a literal is truthy
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* `MAX_STRING_LENGTH` - the maximum length of a string in Toy (can be altered if needed)
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## Structures Used Throughout Toy
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The main unit of data within Toy's internals is `Literal`, which can contain any value that can exist within the Toy langauge. The exact implementation of `Literal` may change or evolve as time goes on, so it's recommended that you only interact with literals directly by using the macros and functions outlined [above](#embedded-api-macros). See the [types](types) page for information on what datatypes exist in Toy.
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There are two main "compound structures" used within Toy's internals - the `LiteralArray` and `LiteralDictionary`. The former is an array of `Literal` instances stored sequentially in memory for fast lookups, while the latter is a key-value hashmap designed for efficient lookups based on a `Literal` key. These are both accessible via the language as well.
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These compound structures hold **copies** of literals given to them, rather than taking ownership of existing literals.
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## Compiling Toy Scripts
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Please see [Compiling Toy](compiling-toy) for more information on the process of turning scripts into bytecode.
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## Interpreting Toy
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The `Interpreter` structure is the beating heart of Toy - You'll usually only need one interpreter, as it can be reset as needed.
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The four basic functions are used as follows:
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```c
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//assume "tb" and "size" are the results of compilation
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Interpreter interpreter;
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initInterpreter(&interpreter);
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runInterpreter(&interpreter, tb, size);
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resetInterpreter(&interpreter); //You usually want to reset between runs
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freeInterpreter(&interpreter);
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```
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In addition to this, you might also wish to "inject" a series of usable libraries into the interpreter, which can be `import`-ed within the language itself. This process only needs to be done once, after initialization, but before the first run.
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```c
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injectNativeHook(&interpreter, "standard", hookStandard);
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```
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A "hook" is a callback function which is invoked when the given library is imported. `standard` is the most commonly used library available.
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```
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import standard;
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```
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Hooks can simply inject native functions into the current scope, or they can do other, more esoteric things (though this is not recommended).
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```c
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//a utility structure for storing the native C functions
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typedef struct Natives {
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char* name;
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NativeFn fn;
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} Natives;
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int hookStandard(Interpreter* interpreter, Literal identifier, Literal alias) {
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//the list of available native C functions that can be called from Toy
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Natives natives[] = {
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{"clock", nativeClock},
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{NULL, NULL}
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};
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//inject each native C functions into the current scope
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for (int i = 0; natives[i].name; i++) {
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injectNativeFn(interpreter, natives[i].name, natives[i].fn);
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}
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return 0;
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}
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```
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## Calling Toy from C
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In some situations, you may find it convenient to call a function written in Toy from the host program. For this, a pair of utility functions have been provided:
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```c
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TOY_API bool callLiteralFn(Interpreter* interpreter, Literal func, LiteralArray* arguments, LiteralArray* returns);
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TOY_API bool callFn (Interpreter* interpreter, char* name, LiteralArray* arguments, LiteralArray* returns);
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```
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The first argument must be an interpreter. The third argument is a pointer to a `LiteralArray` containing a list of arguments to pass to the function, and the fourth is a pointer to a `LiteralArray` where the return values can be stored (an array is used here for a potential future feature). The contents of the argument array is consumed and left in an indeterminate state (but is safe to free), while the returns array always has one value - if the function did not return a value, then it contains a `null` literal.
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The second arguments to these functions are either the function to be called as a `Literal`, or the name of the function within the interpreter's scope. The latter API simply finds the specified `Literal` if it exists and calls the former. As with most APIs, these return `false` if something went wrong.
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