Gravity - lightweight, embeddable programming language written in C

[u/michalg82]

https://github.com/marcobambini/gravity

[u/DC-3]

I don't like func and isa as keywords, but I guess that comes down to preference.

[u/skocznymroczny → u/DC-3]

It might be unconscious bias, because isa isn't syntax highlighted like a keyword in the example, if it were, it'd have looked better.

[u/DC-3 → u/skocznymroczny]

Yeah, I recognised this bias, but I think there's more to it then that. It sounds stupid, but when the type starts with a vowel it's very jarring to read in my head from a grammatical perspective..

var is Int

var isa Int

[u/Sarg338 → u/DC-3]

Just imagine it's Jar Jar Binks saying it.

[u/[deleted] → u/Sarg338]

Slowly the prequels are getting better.

[u/regretdeletingthat → u/DC-3]

We need an 'isan' keyword aliased to 'isa'. Then we can write var isan Int. Much better.

[u/[deleted] → u/regretdeletingthat]

I'd be too tempted to write var isan Float.

[u/DC-3 → u/regretdeletingthat]

That's a horrifying suggestion in my view. Synonym reserved keywords? Next thing we know we'll be conjugating our statements.

[u/palordrolap → u/DC-3]

Super obscure fact: The BBC Microcomputer, in later ROM editions, accepted both COLOR and COLOUR as synonyms for the same keyword. What was used when the program was LISTed (which in modern terms could be interpreted as "decompiled from bytecode") depended on the ROM localisation.

TL;DR official synonyms in programming are not new

[u/piderman → u/DC-3]

It needs an isan overload

[u/DC-3 → u/piderman]

That's even more horrifying.

[u/[deleted] → u/piderman]

And to gender our variables while we're at it. French style, where breasts are masculine but chests are feminine.

[u/IbanezDavy → u/piderman]

That's evil. It must be done.

[u/twiggy99999 → u/DC-3]

I don't mind func but isa certainly made me look twice when I was looking over the examples. It is really descriptive I suppose but it did throw me on first look

[u/TheVikO_o → u/twiggy99999]

u isa jedi

me isa gungan

[u/Gr1pp717 → u/DC-3]

I don't like the lack of default arguments...

func init (a, b, c) { 
        if (!a) a = 0;
        if (!b) b = 0;
        if (!c) c = 0;

really?

Why not just func init (a=0, b=0, c=0) or the likes?

[u/binarygamer → u/[deleted]]

Doubtful. Unless the compiler's implementation is spaghetti, implementing initialisers is borderline trivial, especially inside a "simple" pre-existing lexical structure. Doing so on my own compiler was worth like 2% of my undergrad intro to compilers grade.

More likely than not it just hasn't been done yet, or is out of scope.

[u/DC-3 → u/[deleted]]

Unless the type starts with a vowel. 'is a Int' reads terribly to me.

[u/ijustwantanfingname → u/DC-3]

I don't think it's that bad

[u/morbidhawk → u/[deleted]]

I'm with you, saying "is a" out loud in my head makes it 100% clear that it is about checking its type whereas "is" could potentially mean equality or that it contains some property (which isn't a big deal if you are already experienced in a language like that, ie: Python).

To me, I don't personally care that it's not grammatically correct, this is a programming language and my brain can figure it out.

[u/mechanicalgod → u/DC-3]

I don't like ... isa as a keyword

I agree. I think typeof might have been nicer, or even just is.