I'm currently developing a new language for programming in a continuous environment (compare it to electrical engineering), and I've got some ideas on a certain language construction.
Let me explain the feature by explanation and then by definition:
x = a U b;
Where x is a variable and a and b are other variables (or static values). This works like a union between a and b; no duplicates and no specific order.
with(x) {
// regular 'with' usage; using the global interpretation of "x"
x = 5;
// effectively will do:
// x = a U b U 5;
// a = 5;
// b = 5;
// Thus, when "a" or "b" changes, "x" is still equal to "5".
}
with(x = a) {
// this code block is executed when the "x" variable
// has the "a" variable assigned. All references in
// this code-block to "x" are references to "a". So saying:
x = 5;
// would only change the variable "a". If the variable "a"
// later on changes, x still equals to 5, in this fashion:
// 'x = a U b U 5;'
// '[currentscope] = 5;'
// thus, 'a = 5;'
}
with(x = b) {
// same but with "b"
}
with(x != a) {
// here the "x" variable refers to any variable
// but "a"; thus saying
x = 5;
// is equal to the rewriting of
// 'x = a U b U 5;'
// 'b = 5;' (since it was the scope of this block)
}
with(x = (a U b)) {
// guaranteed that "x" is 'a U b'; interacting with "x"
// will interact with both "a" and "b".
x = 5;
// makes both "a" and "b" equal to 5; also the "x" variable
// is updated to contain:
// 'x = a U b U 5;'
// '[currentscope] = 5;'
// 'a U b = 5;'
// and thus: 'a = 5; b = 5;'.
}
// etc.
In the above, all code-blocks are executed, but the "scope" changes in each block how x is interpreted. In the first block, x is guaranteed to be a: thus interacting with x inside that block will interact on a. The second and the third code-block are only equal in this situation (because not a: then there only remains b). The last block guarantees that x is at least a or b.
Further more; U is not the "bitwise or operator", but I've called it the "and/or"-operator. Its definition is:
"U" = "and" U "or"
(On my blog, http://cplang.wordpress.com/2009/12/19/binop-and-or/, there is more (mathematical) background information on this operator. It's loosely based on sets. Using different syntax, changed it in this question.)
Update: more examples.
print = "Hello world!" U "How are you?"; // this will print
// both values, but the
// order doesn't matter.
// 'userkey' is a variable containing a key.
with(userkey = "a") {
print = userkey; // will only print "a".
}
with(userkey = ("shift" U "a")) {
// pressed both "shift" and the "a" key.
print = userkey; // will "print" shift and "a", even
// if the user also pressed "ctrl":
// the interpretation of "userkey" is changed,
// such that it only contains the matched cases.
}
with((userkey = "shift") U (userkey = "a")) {
// same as if-statement above this one, showing the distributivity.
}
x = 5 U 6 U 7;
y = x + x; // will be:
// y = (5 U 6 U 7) + (5 U 6 U 7)
// = 10 U 11 U 12 U 13 U 14
somewantedkey = "ctrl" U "alt" U "space"
with(userkey = somewantedkey) {
// must match all elements of "somewantedkey"
// (distributed the Boolean equals operated)
// thus only executed when all the defined keys are pressed
}
with(somewantedkey = userkey) {
// matches only one of the provided "somewantedkey"
// thus when only "space" is pressed, this block is executed.
}
Update2: more examples and some more context.
with(x = (a U b)) {
// this
}
// can be written as
with((x = a) U (x = b)) {
// this: changing the variable like
x = 5;
// will be rewritten as:
// a = 5 and b = 5
}
Some background information: I'm building a language which is "time-independent", like Java is "platform-independant". Everything stated in the language is "as is", and is continuously actively executed. This means; the programmer does not know in which order (unless explicitly stated using constructions) elements are, nor when statements are executed. The language is completely separated from the "time"-concept, i.e. it's continuously executed:
with(true) {
a = 0; // only runs once (lazy execution)
}
with(a < 5) {
a++;
} // this is a loop-structure;
// how and when it's executed isn't known however.
with(a) {
// everytime the "a" variable changes, this code-block is executed.
with(true) {
b = 3; // only 5 times (again lazy execution, but it's a sub-with)
}
with(b < 2) { // dependent on "b"
// runs only 3 times * 5 times = 15 times.
}
with(b > 1) { // dependent on "b"
b = b - 1; // runs 4 times * 5 times = 20 times.
}
}
Update 3:
After pondering on the type of this language feature; it closely resemblances Netbeans Platform's Lookup, where each "with"-statement a synchronized agent is, working on it's specific "filter" of objects. Instead of type-based, this is variable-based (fundamentally quite the same; just a different way of identifiying objects).
I greatly thank all of you for providing me with very insightful information and links/hints to great topics I can research. Thanks.
I do not know if this construction already exists, so that's my question: does this language feature already exist?