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Welcome to the AScript wiki!

Goal / Objective:

My objective for AScript is to take syntax from both C and Python programming languages and take the 
functionality from the Bash scripting language. I'm creating this interpreted language for the Thursday Shell 
so that user files can be designed and used. 

Operators:

Arithmetic Operators:
+   -   /   *   --  ++

Relational Operators:
< > <= >= != == 

Logical Operators:
and     or      not

Bitwise and Assignment Operators:
- Don't worry about them just yet...

Function Syntax:

Notes:
    - The function syntax will be similar to python in that anything can be returned.
    - I like the comment mechanisms on defining variable types, this could get complicated in the future, but easier read. If "void" is given in the comment before a function then the return will be ignored if given. 
    - For the declaration of a function, it needs to come before a function that uses it. There can be an update that allows for a simple declaration to be used later on.

- The way a function will resemeble is as the following:

    //Python
    def function_name():
        return (Optional)
    
    // C
    void function_name()
        return (Optional);
    }
    
    // Bash
    function_name() {
    }

    // AScript
    "return type (comment)" funtion_name("int (comment)" counter, "string (comment)" name) {
        return variable;
    }

If, For, and While Syntax:

Notes:
    - I am not supporting do-while and switch statements yet. For the future.

- If statement example:
    - I don't want the opening and closing brackets but if I don't have them then I will need to rely on indentation to understand when a function is done and when one is still going. This complicated is then reusable in for loops, functions, and anything else.
    - I want to use the elif to consolidate the typing down.

    //Python
    if counter:
    elif condition:
    else:
    
    //C
    if (counter) {
    } else if (condition) {
    } else {
    }
    
    //Bash
    if [ $debug_switch -eq 1 ]; then
    elif [ "$1" == "--version" ]; then        
    else
    fi

    //AScript
    if (option1) {
    } elif () {
    } else {
    }

- For Loop Statements example:
    - Using commas because it is similar to the function arguments.
    - This will need to be improved later on in the development of AScript.

    //Python
    for i in data:

    //C
    for (int i = 0; i < 5; ++i) {
    }

    //Bash
    for item in "${backup_array[@]}"; do
    done

    //AScript
    for (i=0, 5, /5) {
    }

- While Loop Statments example:


    //Python
    while break condition:

    //C
    while (break condition) {
    }

    //Bash
    while [ $# -gt 0 ];
    do
        shift
    done

    //AScript
    while (break condition) {
    }

Variables:

//Python
var = 10

//C
<datatype> var = 10;

//Bash
var=10

//AScript
"datatype (comment)" var = 10;

Commands:

- Is support any shell command that is available on the system. 
- If a command that is found is not avaiable on the system, raise a runtime error.
- Anything that comes after the command is considered input to the command.
- Any shell command will have similar syntax to C funcitons. 

//AScript 
echo(Devin is $var years old.)

Data-Structures Syntax:

- Supported data-structures are lists (python)

//AScript
    Instantiation: list temp
    Adding (on width): push
    Removing (anywhere): pop
    Dimension Increase: dim
    Printing Everything: show

Built-ins:

- Is the path a directory or file with the options of -d and -f. 
- Environment commands will collect the environment changes and do something with them.
- Aliases will use the alias option and then whatever comes after it. 

Other Syntax:

- Not worrying about space indentation or any spacing anywhere.
- Having semicolons to represent when a line is finished.
- Not having the main function is needed within the script file.
- You don't have to declare an environment, argc, or argv in the main function parameters.
- Have the datatypes be wrapped in double quotes to signify that they are important to the interpreter. 
  Since we "commander" doing this the hard way it will improve our over the efficiency of figuring out the 
  datatypes. This syntax will also be used in commenting and allow the system to be both single and multiple 
  lines. If I were to do the C syntax for comments then I would have to support two different types of 
  mechanisms and I don't want to do that now.
- For comments, lets keep it with the "//" C syntax.