usage.md

How to use SIMPLE

Example:

1. Create a file HelloWorld.simple in your work directory.
2. Open HelloWorld.simple in your plain text editor of choice.
3. Copy and paste the code below:¹

   %%Example of a SIMPLE program that says "Hello, World!%%
   
   Define a procedure with name Main:
       Set Output to value of "Hello, World!",
       Return Nothing.
   
   

4. Open a command prompt / terminal in the directory.
5. Enter simplexe HelloWorld.simple -e.
6. The result should look like:

   >simplexe HelloWorld.simple -e
   Validation successful
   Hello, World!
   >
   

Command options

The simplexe command has several options that can be entered alongside it, after the file name:

• --help Prints a helper message that briefly describes the command and its options.
• --args To pass anything after it as arguments for the Main function of the program.
• --dialect To specify which grammar dialect the code is written with (ENG, ESP, FRA, ITA or ALT).
• --execute To execute the .simple file after its validation.
• --loop To set the maximum times conditional loops can iterate. Default is 100.
• --minimal To reduce the amount of output produced by the interpreter and not by the program itself.
• --recursion To set the maximum times functions can be called concurrently. Default is 100.

All options have both longhand and shorthand versions, e.g. --help can also be used as -h.
Order of options doesn't matter except for --args which if present must, obviously, be last.
--args, --dialect, --loop and --recursion require to be followed immediately by opportune values.

Footnotes

1. Make sure the tabulation characters are not replaced with multiple spaces . ↩