[SVN] Re: Language editor

[Jeroen van der Ham]

On 14-06-2005 20:21, Allan Odgaard wrote:
> So I'm thinking, maybe at least a short-term solution would be to use  a
> new format (just for editing in the bundle editor). I've been  looking
> at YAML, and while I think their format itself is too complex  (to many
> special rules), a simplified and hardcoded version would  probably
> suffice. Hardcoded in the sense that since I know all  strings are
> single-lines, and I know which keys are used for strings,  I don't need
> any quoting at all (and thus no escaping either).

I'm always having trouble bending my mind over the double escapes in the
current syntax (if you're using plain text), so getting rid of all
escaping (except the regular regexp ones) sounds like a huge improvement.

> If I change the presentation, I was thinking I should also rename the 
> keys like this:
>    begin    -> starts-with
>    end      -> ends-with
>    match    -> matches
>    patterns -> contains
>    include  -> import/reference?

I completely agree with the first 4, they make it much easier to comprehend.
As for the include, I don't know. IMO there's not a lot of difference
between include and import. And reference is just not what it means,
because you're really including that file there.

> These changes all in an attempt to make it more inviting for  “newbies”
> to go ahead and experiment with their own language  definitions. I still
> think a GUI is ideal for such goal, because then  there's no way the
> user can screwup, OTOH I can't envision how the  ideal GUI should look.

Well perhaps something along the lines of Quartz Composer ?
Using matchings as blobs and have names for groups, where you could
possibly plugin other matchings.

I don't know, just an idea out of the top my head, haven't really used
Quartz Composer anyway.

But then again, if you're going for Yaml with a strictly defined syntax,
then that could work as well...I mean, look at Applescript, lots of
people who don't know how to program can do things with that and still
understand the code written in there.

Jeroen.
-- 
            <http://www.je-ju.net/~jeroen/blog/>