Synthex Programming Language

Note: Synthex is an ongoing project and the language is not yet finished. The information provided here is based on the current state of the language as of 05-08-2023.(dd/mm/yyyy) Introduction

Synthex is a programming language designed to be simple, expressive, and efficient. It draws inspiration from various existing programming languages while introducing some unique features that make it stand out.

Features

Rust-like Syntax : Synthex adopts a familiar syntax inspired by the Rust programming language, making it easy for developers with Rust, C, C++, or Java experience to quickly get started.
Strong Typing: Synthex is statically and strongly typed, providing the benefit of early error detection and increased program stability.
Arrays: Synthex supports arrays, allowing you to work with collections of data efficiently.
Conditional Statements: You can use if-else statements for decision-making in your programs.
Loops: Synthex provides while loops, enabling repetitive execution of code blocks based on a condition.
For loops
Pointers
Custom types with structs and enums and such
Generic types

Sample Program: Rule 110

// rule 110
fnc print(a : str, ...) : void;
fnc get_num() : i32;

fnc main() : i32 {
    print("Enter number of rows: ");
    rows : i32 = get_num();

    arr : [i32; 51];
    arr_n : [i32; 51];

    // Zero out the arrays
    ctr : i32 = 0;
    while (ctr < 51){
        arr[ctr] = 0;
        arr_n[ctr] = 0;
        ctr = ctr + 1;
    }

    // Set the initial conditions
    arr[49] = 1;

    idx : i32 = 0;
    while (idx < rows) {
        sc : i32 = 1;
        // Calculate the next row
        while (sc < 50){
            if (arr[sc - 1] == 1 && arr[sc] == 1 && arr[sc + 1] == 1) {
                arr_n[sc] = 0;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 1 && arr[sc] == 1 && arr[sc + 1] == 0){
                arr_n[sc] = 1;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 1 && arr[sc] == 0 && arr[sc + 1] == 1){
                arr_n[sc] = 1;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 1 && arr[sc] == 0 && arr[sc + 1] == 0){
                arr_n[sc] = 0;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 0 && arr[sc] == 1 && arr[sc + 1] == 1){
                arr_n[sc] = 1;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 0 && arr[sc] == 1 && arr[sc + 1] == 0){
                arr_n[sc] = 1;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 0 && arr[sc] == 0 && arr[sc + 1] == 1){
                arr_n[sc] = 1;
            } elif (arr[sc - 1] == 0 && arr[sc] == 0 && arr[sc + 1] == 0){
                arr_n[sc] = 0;
            }

            sc = sc + 1;
        }
        // Print the row
        i : i32 = 0;
        while (i < 50){
            ch : str;
            if (arr[i] == 1){
                ch = "X";
            } elif (arr[i] == 0){
                ch = " ";
            } else {
                ch = "*";
            }
            print(ch);
            i = i + 1;
        }
        print("%s", "\n");
        ir : i32 = 0;
        while (ir < 50){
            tm : i32 = arr_n[ir];
            arr[ir] = tm;
            ir = ir + 1;
        }
        idx = idx + 1;
    }
    ret 0;
}

Language Status

As of 05-08-2023.(dd/mm/yyyy), Synthex is still a work in progress. The language is evolving, and new features are being added, while existing ones might undergo changes for improvement.

Note: The sample code provided here may not represent the final syntax or semantics of the language.

Contributing

I welcome contributions from the community to help shape the future of Synthex. Whether it's fixing bugs, proposing new features, or improving documentation, your efforts are valuable.

Getting Started

As the language is still in development, there is no stable release available yet. However, you can experiment with the current version.

Compilng the compiler

Clone the repo.

Install the build tool with cargo

cargo install builder_cpp

Build the project

builder_cpp -b

Compile the source code to a .ll file with

builder_cpp -br --bin-args <filename.syn>

Compile the .ll file with clang

clang -o <bin-name> <filename.syn.ll>

If you want to include external functions from a C source code, just define the functions in the C file and compile them to a .o file and pass them to the link phase.

For example, in the above example, the print and get_num functions are imported from C.

To try out the example code :

Create functions.c file

#include <stdarg.h>
#include <stdio.h>

// Wrapper around printf
void print(const char *fmt, ...) {
    va_list args;
    va_start(args, fmt);
    int result = vprintf(fmt, args);
    va_end(args);
}

int get_num() {
    int num;
    scanf("%d", &num);
    return num;
}

Compile and link

clang -c -o functions.o functions.c
builder_cpp -r --bin-args rule110.syn
clang -o app functions.o rule110.syn.ll
./app

Community

Join our friendly community of developers and language enthusiasts on Discord to discuss ideas, ask questions, and get updates on the progress of Synthex.

License

Synthex is released under the BSD 2 clause License, granting developers the freedom to use, modify, and distribute the language under certain conditions. Please refer to the license file for more details.

Acknowledgments

I would like to express our gratitude to the developers of the programming languages that served as inspirations for Synthex, as well as the broader open-source community for their valuable contributions to the field of programming language development.

Dr-42/synthex-lang