Re: 4GL language design, was Writing a recursive descent parser in C

"David Thompson" <david.thompson1@worldnet.att.net>
27 Dec 2001 00:14:09 -0500

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From: "David Thompson" <david.thompson1@worldnet.att.net>
Newsgroups: comp.compilers
Date: 27 Dec 2001 00:14:09 -0500
Organization: AT&T Worldnet
References: 01-11-146 01-12-008 01-12-020 01-12-040 01-12-046
Keywords: design
Posted-Date: 27 Dec 2001 00:14:09 EST

Alex Colvin <alexc@world.std.com> wrote :
....
> Then there was OCCAM, where indentation determines block
> structure. I've never haad a chance to try this, and I'm not sure how
> to implement it, but it looks like a nice idea. In most cases the
> programmer indents, but the compiler ignores it and uses other
> signs. Inevitably, the programmer and the compiler disagree.
>
I have heard Python also does this.


I worked (once, long ago) on the compiler for a small, in-house
language roughly comparable to "tiny C" or maybe even B, that used
indention for block structure. The lexer effectively created a single
token based on comparing current-line indent to previous, named INDENT
UNDENT or (my favorite) DENTED.


<drift>


That development system (what would today be called a toolchain) had
inter alia a command FIX to drive a complete sequence of edit
specified file + compile that file + link -- like a very basic MAKE.
And one time I had a bug in an error-handling routine whose source was
in a file named logically enough ERROR -- so once in my life I gave a
computer the command FIX ERROR and it did!


</>
--
- David.Thompson 1 now at worldnet.att.net

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