Clarify immaturity of grammar, add a pile of half-baked grammar rules.
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Graydon Hoare
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doc/rust.md
135
doc/rust.md
@ -42,6 +42,15 @@ If you have suggestions to make, please try to focus them on *reductions* to
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the language: possible features that can be combined or omitted. We aim to
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keep the size and complexity of the language under control.
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**Note on grammar:** The grammar for Rust given in this document is rough and
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very incomplete; only a modest number of sections have accompanying grammar
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rules. Formalizing the grammar accepted by the Rust parser is ongoing work,
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but future versions of this document will contain a complete
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grammar. Moreover, we hope that this grammar will be be extracted and verified
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as LL(1) by an automated grammar-analysis tool, and further tested against the
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Rust sources. Preliminary versions of this automation exist, but are not yet
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complete.
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# Notation
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Rust's grammar is defined over Unicode codepoints, each conventionally
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@ -81,13 +90,6 @@ Where:
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This EBNF dialect should hopefully be familiar to many readers.
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The grammar for Rust given in this document is extracted and verified as LL(1)
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by an automated grammar-analysis tool, and further tested against the Rust
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sources. The generated parser is currently *not* the one used by the Rust
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compiler itself, but in the future we hope to relate the two together more
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precisely. As of this writing they are only related by testing against
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existing source code.
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## Unicode productions
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A small number of productions in Rust's grammar permit Unicode codepoints
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@ -917,7 +919,7 @@ In this example, `nonempty_list` is a predicate---it can be used in a
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typestate constraint---but the auxiliary function `pure_length` is
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not.
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*ToDo:* should actually define referential transparency.
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*TODO:* should actually define referential transparency.
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The effect checking rules previously enumerated are a restricted set of
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typechecking rules meant to approximate the universe of observably
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@ -933,7 +935,7 @@ blocks, the compiler provides no static guarantee that the code will behave as
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expected at runtime. Rather, the programmer has an independent obligation to
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verify the semantics of the predicates they write.
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*ToDo:* last two sentences are vague.
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*TODO:* last two sentences are vague.
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An example of a predicate that uses an unchecked block:
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@ -1327,6 +1329,12 @@ declaring a function-local item.
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#### Slot declarations
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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let_decl : "let" pat [':' type ] ? [ init ] ? ';' ;
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init : [ '=' | '<-' ] expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A _slot declaration_ has one one of two forms:
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* `let` `pattern` `optional-init`;
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@ -1382,6 +1390,12 @@ values.
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### Record expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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rec_expr : '{' ident ':' expr
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[ ',' ident ':' expr ] *
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[ "with" expr ] '}'
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~~~~~~~~
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A _[record](#record-types) expression_ is one or more comma-separated
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name-value pairs enclosed by braces. A fieldname can be any identifier
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(including reserved words), and is separated from its value expression
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@ -1414,6 +1428,10 @@ let base = {x: 1, y: 2, z: 3};
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### Field expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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field_expr : expr '.' expr
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~~~~~~~~
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A dot can be used to access a field in a record.
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~~~~~~~~ {.field}
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@ -1439,6 +1457,10 @@ expression on the left of the dot.
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### Vector expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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vec_expr : '[' "mutable" ? [ expr [ ',' expr ] * ] ? ']'
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~~~~~~~~
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A _[vector](#vector-types) expression_ is written by enclosing zero or
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more comma-separated expressions of uniform type in square brackets.
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The keyword `mutable` can be written after the opening bracket to
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@ -1453,6 +1475,11 @@ When no mutability is specified, the vector is immutable.
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### Index expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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idx_expr : expr '[' expr ']'
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~~~~~~~~
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[Vector](#vector-types)-typed expressions can be indexed by writing a
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square-bracket-enclosed expression (the index) after them. When the
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vector is mutable, the resulting _lval_ can be assigned to.
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@ -1492,6 +1519,13 @@ operators, before the expression they apply to.
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### Binary operator expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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binop_expr : expr binop expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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Binary operators expressions are given in terms of
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[operator precedence](#operator-precedence).
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#### Arithmetic operators
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Binary arithmetic expressions require both their operands to be of the
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@ -1672,10 +1706,15 @@ as
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== !=
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&&
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||
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= <- <->
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~~~~
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### Unary copy expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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copy_expr : "copy" expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A _unary copy expression_ consists of the unary `copy` operator applied to
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some argument expression.
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@ -1684,8 +1723,8 @@ copies the resulting value, allocating any memory necessary to hold the new
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copy.
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[Shared boxes](#shared-box-types) (type `@`) are, as usual, shallow-copied, as
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they may be cyclic. [Unique boxes](unique-box-types), [vectors](#vector-types)
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and similar unique types are deep-copied.
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they may be cyclic. [Unique boxes](#unique-box-types),
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[vectors](#vector-types) and similar unique types are deep-copied.
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Since the binary [assignment operator](#assignment-operator) `=` performs a
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copy implicitly, the unary copy operator is typically only used to cause an
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@ -1707,6 +1746,10 @@ assert v[0] == 1; // Original was not modified
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### Unary move expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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move_expr : "move" expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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This is used to indicate that the referenced _lval_ must be moved out,
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rather than copied, when evaluating this expression. It will only have
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an effect when the expression is _stored_ somewhere or passed to a
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@ -1796,6 +1839,11 @@ way.
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### While expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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while_expr : "while" expr '{' block '}'
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| "do" '{' block '}' "while" expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A `while` expression is a loop construct. A `while` loop may be either a
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simple `while` or a `do`-`while` loop.
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@ -1813,7 +1861,7 @@ loop body. If it evaluates to `false`, control exits the loop.
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An example of a simple `while` expression:
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~~~~
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while (i < 10) {
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while i < 10 {
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print("hello\n");
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i = i + 1;
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}
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@ -1825,17 +1873,25 @@ An example of a `do`-`while` expression:
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do {
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print("hello\n");
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i = i + 1;
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} while (i < 10);
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} while i < 10;
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~~~~
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### Break expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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break_expr : "break" ;
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~~~~~~~~
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Executing a `break` expression immediately terminates the innermost loop
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enclosing it. It is only permitted in the body of a loop.
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### Continue expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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break_expr : "cont" ;
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~~~~~~~~
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Evaluating a `cont` expression immediately terminates the current iteration of
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the innermost loop enclosing it, returning control to the loop *head*. In the
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case of a `while` loop, the head is the conditional expression controlling the
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@ -1847,6 +1903,10 @@ A `cont` expression is only permitted in the body of a loop.
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### For expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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for_expr : "for" pat "in" expr '{' block '}' ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A _for loop_ is controlled by a vector or string. The for loop bounds-checks
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the underlying sequence *once* when initiating the loop, then repeatedly
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executes the loop body with the loop variable referencing the successive
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@ -1865,6 +1925,14 @@ for e: foo in v {
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### If expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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if_expr : "if" expr '{' block '}'
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[ "else" else_tail ] ? ;
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else_tail : "else" [ if_expr
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| '{' block '} ] ;
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~~~~~~~~
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An `if` expression is a conditional branch in program control. The form of
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an `if` expression is a condition expression, followed by a consequent
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block, any number of `else if` conditions and blocks, and an optional
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@ -1879,6 +1947,15 @@ then any `else` block is executed.
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### Alternative expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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alt_expr : "alt" expr '{' alt_arm [ '|' alt_arm ] * '}' ;
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alt_arm : alt_pat '{' block '}' ;
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alt_pat : pat [ "to" pat ] ? [ "if" expr ] ;
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~~~~~~~~
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An `alt` expression branches on a *pattern*. The exact form of matching that
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occurs depends on the pattern. Patterns consist of some combination of
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literals, destructured tag constructors, records and tuples, variable binding
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@ -1971,6 +2048,10 @@ let message = alt maybe_digit {
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### Fail expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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fail_expr : "fail" expr ? ;
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~~~~~~~~
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Evaluating a `fail` expression causes a task to enter the *failing* state. In
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the *failing* state, a task unwinds its stack, destroying all frames and
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freeing all resources until it reaches its entry frame, at which point it
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@ -1978,6 +2059,10 @@ halts execution in the *dead* state.
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### Note expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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note_expr : "note" expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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**Note: Note expressions are not yet supported by the compiler.**
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A `note` expression has no effect during normal execution. The purpose of a
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@ -2023,6 +2108,10 @@ expression.
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### Return expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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ret_expr : "ret" expr ? ;
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~~~~~~~~
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Return expressions are denoted with the keyword `ret`. Evaluating a `ret`
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expression^[footnote{A `ret` expression is analogous to a `return` expression
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in the C family.] moves its argument into the output slot of the current
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@ -2042,6 +2131,10 @@ fn max(a: int, b: int) -> int {
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### Log expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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log_expr : "log" '(' level ',' expr ')' ;
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~~~~~~~~
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Evaluating a `log` expression may, depending on runtime configuration, cause a
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value to be appended to an internal diagnostic logging buffer provided by the
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runtime or emitted to a system console. Log expressions are enabled or
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@ -2094,6 +2187,10 @@ when it is changed.
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### Check expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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check_expr : "check" call_expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A `check` expression connects dynamic assertions made at run-time to the
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static [typestate system](#typestate-system). A `check` expression takes a
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constraint to check at run-time. If the constraint holds at run-time, control
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@ -2134,6 +2231,10 @@ fn test() {
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**Note: Prove expressions are not yet supported by the compiler.**
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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prove_expr : "prove" call_expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A `prove` expression has no run-time effect. Its purpose is to statically
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check (and document) that its argument constraint holds at its expression
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entry point. If its argument typestate does not hold, under the typestate
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@ -2141,6 +2242,10 @@ algorithm, the program containing it will fail to compile.
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### Claim expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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claim_expr : "claim" call_expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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A `claim` expression is an unsafe variant on a `check` expression that is not
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actually checked at runtime. Thus, using a `claim` implies a proof obligation
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to ensure---without compiler assistance---that an assertion always holds.
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@ -2183,6 +2288,10 @@ if check even(x) {
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### Assert expressions
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~~~~~~~~{.ebnf .gram}
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assert_expr : "assert" expr ;
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~~~~~~~~
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An `assert` expression is similar to a `check` expression, except
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the condition may be any boolean-typed expression, and the compiler makes no
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use of the knowledge that the condition holds if the program continues to
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