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go: parse.sx — switch + select + 8 tests; stmts done [shapes-scheduler]
Adds Go's switch and select statements:

  switch TAG { case V1, V2: a; case V3: b; default: c }
  switch { case cond: ... }                            — tagless
  select { case x := <-ch: a; case ch <- v: b; default: c }

AST shapes:
  (list :switch TAG CASES)             — TAG nil for tagless
  (list :case VALUES BODY)             — VALUES is expr-list
  (list :select CASES)
  (list :select-case COMM-STMT BODY)   — COMM-STMT is send/recv-assign/bare-recv
  (list :default BODY)

gp-parse-case-body reads stmts until the next case/default/}/eof
without consuming the terminator — used by both switch and select.

select-case parsing reuses gp-parse-stmt for the comm-stmt, so all
four shapes (send, x := <-ch, x = <-ch, bare <-ch) fall out from the
existing stmt parser. Composite-lit suppression is engaged for the
switch tag expression.

Type-switch (`switch v := x.(type) { case int: ... }`) is the one
deferred shape; needs the `.(type)` pseudo-syntax recognised in the
expression layer. Phase 2 statement coverage is otherwise complete.

This is also a chiselling iteration for scheduler sister kit. Diary
updated with select-case design insights:

  * All four select-case shapes share (list :select-case STMT BODY)
    — kit primitive sched-select accepts a uniform list of cases.
  * Default vs no-default determines blocking semantics. Erlang's
    `receive ... after Timeout -> ...` is the analogue — both fit
    "non-blocking fallback case" in the kit API.

parse 169/169, total 298/298.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-05-27 20:29:37 +00:00

752 lines
41 KiB
Markdown

# Go-on-SX — Go as an SX guest language
Port Go to SX as the **first static-typed, bidirectional-checked guest** in
the rose-ash language family. Goal isn't a production Go compiler; it's to
prove the substrate from a paradigm angle the existing eleven guests don't
cover, and to chisel out the lib/guest kits that statically-typed guests N+1
and N+2 will need.
Reference:
- `plans/lib-guest.md` — parent, chiselling discipline, two-language rule.
- `plans/lib-guest-scheduler.md` — sister kit; Go's scheduler pairs with
Erlang's. Extraction gated on this loop reaching Phase 5.
- `plans/lib-guest-static-types-bidirectional.md` — sister kit; Go's
checker pairs with a TBD second consumer. Extraction gated on this loop
reaching Phase 3.
- `plans/erlang-on-sx.md` — reference implementation for paradigm-port:
process model, BIF registry, hot reload, VM bytecode opcodes.
**Branch:** `loops/go` (loop-style workstream once kicked off). SX files via
`sx-tree` MCP only.
## Thesis — why Go
Eleven guests already live in `lib/`: apl, common-lisp, datalog, erlang,
forth, haskell, hyperscript, js, kernel, lua, minikanren, ocaml, prolog,
ruby, scheme, smalltalk, tcl. Every one is either **dynamically typed**
(most) or **HM-inferred** (haskell, ocaml). None exercise:
1. **Bidirectional static type checking** — annotation-driven, locally-
inferred, the dominant paradigm of modern statically-typed languages.
2. **Anonymous-channel concurrency** — Go's `chan` and `select`. Erlang has
addressed processes + mailboxes; Go has anonymous values + structural
pairing. Two different vocabularies for the same underlying scheduler
machinery.
3. **Structural interfaces**`io.Reader` is "anything with this method
signature", not a declared subtype relationship. Different from Haskell
typeclasses (nominal), different from Lua duck typing (no declaration).
These three together make Go an unusually high-value port for proving SX.
If SX can host Go cleanly, it can host the next decade of mainstream
statically-typed languages (Rust, TS, Swift, Kotlin, Scala 3, Hack) because
they share these three properties.
Like Erlang-on-SX validated the actor model on the substrate, Go-on-SX
validates the goroutine model + bidirectional types.
## Non-goals (deliberate)
Out of scope. Reject feature requests for these without further consideration:
- **`unsafe` package.** Memory mucking. Skip entirely.
- **CGo.** C interop. Out of scope at every level.
- **Full `reflect`.** Provide enough for `fmt.Println` to render values;
reject the rest.
- **Build tags, modules, vendoring.** Treat source as monolithic. One
package per file, no real import resolution.
- **Production performance.** Conformance tests pass; benchmarks don't.
- **Garbage collection tuning.** SX's GC is what you get.
- **Race detector, escape analysis, inlining.** Out of scope.
- **`os`, `net/http`, full stdlib.** Provide a deliberately small slice
(Phase 8 below).
## Architecture sketch
```
Go source text
lib/go/lex.sx — tokens; ASI; literals; operators
│ (consumes lib/guest/core/lex.sx)
lib/go/parse.sx — AST: package/import/var/const/type/func/struct/
│ interface; expressions; statements
│ (consumes lib/guest/core/pratt.sx + ast.sx)
lib/go/types.sx — bidirectional type checker. Synth + check judgments;
│ structural interface satisfaction; pluggable subtype
│ (INDEPENDENT — no lib/guest/static-types-bidirectional
│ yet; this loop builds the first consumer)
lib/go/eval.sx — tree-walk evaluator on CEK. Variables as mutable cells;
│ slices = (length, capacity, backing-vector); maps =
│ SX dict; defer stack per frame.
lib/go/sched.sx — goroutine scheduler + channels + select
│ (INDEPENDENT — no lib/guest/scheduler yet; this loop
│ builds the first consumer)
lib/go/std/ — minimal stdlib slice (fmt, strings, strconv, sync,
time, errors)
```
Semantic mappings (operational):
- `go fn(args)``task-spawn` on the local scheduler.
- `ch <- v``task-block` with predicate "receiver waiting on ch".
- `v := <-ch``task-block` with predicate "sender waiting on ch".
- `select { case ... }``task-block` with predicate "any case ready".
- `defer fn()` → push thunk onto per-frame defer stack; runs LIFO on
return or panic.
- `panic(v)` → raise SX exception; deferred fns run while unwinding.
- `recover()` → CEK exception capture inside a deferred fn.
- `interface{T}` → type-check matches structurally against T's method
set; at runtime, the value carries its concrete-type metadata.
- `struct{...}` → SX dict + type tag; methods are functions in the type's
method table.
- `*T` (pointer) → mutable cell (Common Lisp port did the same).
- `[]T` (slice) → triple (length, capacity, backing-vector).
- `map[K]V` → SX dict; iteration order spec-undefined (v1 = sorted for
determinism — programs that depend on indeterminism fail loudly, which
is a feature not a bug).
## Conformance scoreboard
Following `lib/erlang/scoreboard.json` precedent. Add
`lib/go/scoreboard.json` on first iteration; populate as suites land.
Suites planned:
| Suite | Tests target | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| `lex` | 50+ | Keywords, operators, literals, ASI |
| `parse` | 80+ | All statement & expression shapes |
| `types` | 90+ | Synth, check, interface satisfaction, generics |
| `eval` | 100+ | Tree-walk over typed AST |
| `runtime` | 60+ | Goroutines, channels, select, close |
| `stdlib` | 40+ | fmt, strings, strconv, sync, time, errors |
| `e2e` | 10+ | Complete representative programs |
## Phasing — one feature per commit
Loop-style. Each phase: implement → test → commit → tick `[ ]` → append
Progress-log line → push `origin/loops/go`.
### Phase 1 — Tokenizer (`lib/go/lex.sx`) ✅
- [x] Scaffold + scoreboard + conformance runner (consumes lib/guest/lex.sx)
- [x] Identifiers + 25 keywords
- [x] Decimal integer literals
- [x] Interpreted string literals `"..."` with `\n \t \r \\ \" \'` escapes
- [x] Rune literals `'x'` (single char + simple escapes)
- [x] Line + block comments (block w/ newline triggers ASI)
- [x] Common operator/punct set incl. `:= <- ++ -- == != <= >= && || ...`
- [x] **Automatic semicolon insertion** (Go spec § Semicolons) — newline,
EOF, and block-comment-with-newline trigger `;` after
ident/int/string/rune/{break,continue,fallthrough,return}/{++,--,),],}}.
- [x] Float / imaginary literals (decimal floats: `3.14 .5 1. 1e10 1.5e-3`;
imag: `2i 3.14i 1e2i`; hex floats `0x1.fp0` deferred)
- [x] Raw string literals `` `...` `` (multi-line, no escape processing,
`\r` stripped per Go spec § String literals; same `"string"` type
as interpreted strings)
- [x] Hex/octal/binary integer literals (0x… 0o… 0b…) + underscores
(legacy 0123 octal also accepted; consumes lex-hex-digit?)
- [x] Full operator set audit (47 distinct per Go spec, plus `~` for
generics type-sets). Exhaustive coverage tests in `op-audit:` block.
- **Acceptance:** lex/ suite at 50+ tests. Current: 129/129. **Phase 1
done** — hex floats deferred (rare). Move to Phase 2 next.
### Phase 2 — Parser (`lib/go/parse.sx`) ⬜
- [x] Parser scaffold + Go operator-precedence table (entry shape from
`lib/guest/pratt.sx`) + primary expressions (int/float/imag/string/
rune/ident → ast-literal / ast-var via `lib/guest/ast.sx`).
- [x] Binary operators (Pratt precedence climbing using `pratt-op-lookup`
+ Go precedence table). Operator app emitted as
`(ast-app (ast-var OP) [LHS RHS])`; left-assoc raises right-min by 1.
- [x] Unary operators (`+x`, `-x`, `!x`, `^x`, `*p`, `&v`, `<-ch`).
`gp-parse-unary` recursive, sits between `gp-parse-expr` and
`gp-parse-primary`; right-associative chains (`!!x`).
- [x] Function calls `f(a, b)` (canonical `ast-app`) and member access
`x.field` (Go-specific `(list :select OBJ "field")` — the AST kit
doesn't ship a selector node; this is a sister-plan-static-types
data point about what the canonical AST is missing).
- [x] Index `x[i]` and slice `x[a:b]`/`x[a:b:c]`. Go-specific
`(list :index OBJ IDX)` and `(list :slice OBJ LOW HIGH MAX)`
(LOW/HIGH/MAX may be nil) — kit lacks both. Permissive parser
accepts `a[1::3]` (strict Go rejects, but type phase can enforce).
- [x] Type assertion `v.(T)`. `(list :assert OBJ TYPE)`. Includes a
minimal `gp-parse-type` (named / qualified `pkg.T` / pointer
`*T` / `**T`); full type grammar still pending below.
- [x] Type expressions: **slice `[]T`, array `[N]T`, map `map[K]V`, chan
`chan T` / `chan<- T` / `<-chan T`, pointer `*T`, named `T`,
qualified `pkg.T`, func `func(...) ...`, struct `struct{...}` with
shared-type field rows (`x, y int`), interface `interface{...}`
with methods + embedded interfaces (named and qualified)** all
done — kit has no type primitives. Field tags, struct embeds,
variadic, named func-params, Go 1.18 type sets, generics deferred.
- [x] Composite literals: `T{...}`, `[]T{...}`, `[N]T{...}`,
`map[K]V{...}`, `pkg.T{...}`, nested. Positional and keyed
(`X: 1, Y: 2`) elements. AST `(list :composite TYPE-OR-EXPR ELEMS)`;
elements are exprs or `(list :kv KEY VALUE)`. Note: in statement
context (e.g. `if cond { ... }`) my parser would WRONGLY treat
the body as a composite; statement parsing will need a "no-
composite-here" mode flag — to be added when statements arrive.
- [x] Declarations: `package`, `import`, `var`, `const`, `type`, `func`
(with named-greedy params + method receivers + body skipped
opaquely until statement parsing arrives). All five `:field`
consumers now exist (struct fields, var, const, func params, method
receivers) — strong signal that `ast-binding-group` belongs in the
canonical AST kit. Grouped/parenthesized decls (`var (...)`, etc.)
and variadic params deferred. Anonymous param-list disambiguation
(`func(int, string)`) is a known parser-greedy limitation, flagged.
- [x] Statements: return, short-decl, assign, compound assign, expr stmt,
block, if/else (chained), for (4 shapes incl. range), break,
continue, inc-dec, go, defer, send, **switch (tagged / tagless,
multi-value cases, default), select (recv-into-var / send /
bare-recv / default)** all done. Composite-literal `{` suppression
active in control-flow conditions. Type-switch (`switch v :=
x.(type)`) deferred to a follow-up.
- [ ] End-to-end: hello-world, fibonacci, FizzBuzz, goroutine ping-pong,
struct + method.
- **Acceptance:** parse/ suite at 80+ tests. **Acceptance bar crossed:
169/169.** Remaining sub-item (end-to-end programs) keeps Phase 2
open ⬜.
### Phase 3 — Bidirectional type checker, MVP (`lib/go/types.sx`) ⬜
- **Independent implementation.** Do NOT use lib/guest/static-types-
bidirectional/ — that kit doesn't exist yet and depends on this work
for its design. See `plans/lib-guest-static-types-bidirectional.md`.
- Synth + check judgments. Context as a value (per-block scope).
- Coverage MVP: declared-type variables, function signatures (params +
returns), call type-checking, simple composite types (slice, map, chan
element), interface satisfaction (structural match against method sets),
short variable declaration `:=` (synth from RHS).
- **Untyped constants.** `42` has type `untyped int` until contextualised;
this is the canonical pitfall (see Gotchas below).
- Defer: generics (Phase 7), full conversion rules.
- Tests: positive (type-correct programs check) + negative (mismatched
types fail with informative errors carrying AST paths).
- **Acceptance:** types/ suite at 60+ tests. Chisel note `shapes-static-
types-bidirectional` — append a paragraph to the sister plan's design
diary describing what synth/check shape emerged.
### Phase 4 — Tree-walk evaluator (`lib/go/eval.sx`) ⬜
- AST-walking interpreter over CEK. Each Go statement maps to one step
function (precedent: `step-sf-if` etc. in spec/evaluator.sx).
- Variables: mutable cells. Pointer semantics: `&x` returns the cell,
`*p` dereferences.
- Slices: triple (length, capacity, backing-vector). `append` honours
capacity-grow per spec.
- Maps: SX dict + key-type metadata.
- Structs: SX dict + type tag. Methods looked up via type's method table.
- Functions: closures over enclosing scope; multiple return values.
- Channels: stub (Phase 5 wires them).
- Tests: arithmetic, control flow, recursion, closures, slices, maps,
structs, methods, pointer semantics, multiple-return.
- **Acceptance:** eval/ suite at 80+ tests. No concurrency yet.
### Phase 5 — Goroutines + channels + select (`lib/go/sched.sx`) ⬜
- **Independent implementation.** Do NOT use lib/guest/scheduler/ — that
kit doesn't exist yet and depends on this work for its design. See
`plans/lib-guest-scheduler.md`.
- `go expr` — spawn a goroutine; returns nothing.
- `chan T` — `make(chan T)` creates an unbuffered channel; `make(chan T,n)`
creates a buffered channel (Phase 5b — defer buffer to a sub-phase).
- `<-ch` — receive (blocks until sender ready).
- `ch <- v` — send (blocks until receiver ready for unbuffered, or buffer
has room for buffered).
- `select { case ... }` — non-deterministic multiplexing; `default` makes
it non-blocking.
- `close(ch)` — closes channel. Receive on closed → zero value + ok=false.
- Tests: ping-pong, fan-out/fan-in, work queue, select with default,
select with timeout (via a `time.After`-like stub), close semantics,
range over channel.
- **Acceptance:** runtime/ suite at 40+ tests. Chisel note `shapes-
scheduler` — append a paragraph to the sister plan's design diary
describing what task-spawn/block/wake/yield shape emerged.
### Phase 5b — Buffered channels + select fairness ⬜
- Buffered: send blocks only when buffer full; recv only when empty.
- `select` random case ordering (spec mandates pseudo-random; v1 uses a
fixed seed for determinism with a `runtime`-package knob to randomise).
- Tests: buffer-full blocking, buffer-empty blocking, select fairness
over many iterations.
- **Acceptance:** runtime/ +20 tests.
### Phase 6 — `defer` + panic/recover ⬜
- Defer stack per function frame; runs LIFO on return (normal or panic).
- `panic(v)` unwinds frames running deferreds; `recover()` inside a
deferred fn captures the panic value and stops unwinding.
- Goroutine panic propagation: a panicking goroutine that doesn't recover
crashes the whole program (honour Go spec, or document divergence).
- Tests: defer order (LIFO), defer + named-return mutation, panic/recover,
panic across goroutines, defer in a loop (push per iter, run on fn
return — common bug).
- **Acceptance:** eval/ +20 tests.
### Phase 7 — Generics (Go 1.18+) ⬜
- Type parameters with constraints (type sets: `interface{ int | float64
}`, `comparable`, `any`).
- Type inference at call sites — basic; the full Go inference algorithm
is notoriously complex. Implement enough for common cases; document
limitations in a Blockers section below.
- Tests: generic function (`func Map[T, U any](xs []T, f func(T) U) []U`),
generic data structure (linked list), constrained type param.
- **Acceptance:** types/ +30 tests.
### Phase 8 — Minimal stdlib (`lib/go/std/`) ⬜
- Implement just what's needed for representative programs:
- `fmt` — `Println`, `Printf`, `Sprintf`, `Fprintf`, `Errorf`,
`Stringer` dispatch. Verbs: `%d %s %v %t %f %T %+v`.
- `strings` — `Contains`, `HasPrefix`, `HasSuffix`, `Split`, `Join`,
`TrimSpace`, `ToUpper`, `ToLower`, `Replace`, `Index`, `Count`,
`Repeat`, `NewReader`.
- `strconv` — `Itoa`, `Atoi`, `FormatFloat`, `ParseFloat`, `ParseInt`,
`FormatInt`.
- `errors` — `New`, `Is`, `As`, `Unwrap`.
- `sync` — `Mutex` (cooperative — flag + waiter queue), `WaitGroup`,
`Once`, `RWMutex`.
- `time` — `Now`, `Since`, `After` (channel-returning timer), `Sleep`,
`Duration`, `Time`.
- `io` — `Reader`/`Writer` interfaces; `ReadAll`; `Copy`.
- `sort` — `Slice`, `Ints`, `Strings`.
- Tests: round-trip Itoa/Atoi, fmt verb coverage, sync.WaitGroup with
goroutines, time.After in a select, sort.Slice with custom less fn.
- **Acceptance:** stdlib/ suite at 40+ tests.
### Phase 9 — End-to-end programs ⬜
- Complete programs from canonical sources (gopl.io, "concurrency
patterns" talk examples) running end-to-end:
- Concurrent prime sieve
- HTTP-ish ping-pong over stubbed transport
- Word frequency counter
- Pipeline (channel chain)
- Producer/consumer with sync.WaitGroup
- "Bounded parallelism" pattern (worker pool over a job channel)
- **Acceptance:** e2e/ suite at 10+ tests, all passing.
### Phase 10 — lib/guest extraction enabler ⬜
- Now that Go has lex+parse+types+eval+sched, sister plans are unblocked
on the Go side. This phase is **doc-only** in `loops/go`:
- Cross-reference `plans/lib-guest-scheduler.md` — mark its Phase 1
(Go scheduler independent) as complete from Go's side.
- Cross-reference `plans/lib-guest-static-types-bidirectional.md` —
mark its Phase 1 as complete from Go's side.
- Update the chiselling diary in each sister plan with the actual
Go-side surface that emerged.
- **Acceptance:** sister plans cross-referenced + diaries updated. No
new Go code.
### Phase 11 — VM bytecode opcodes (deferred, optional) ⬜
- Following Erlang-on-SX Phase 10 precedent: identify hot paths in the
tree-walk evaluator, define Go-specific bytecode opcodes, compile hot
fns through them. Substantial work; only justified if Go programs
exercise enough volume that performance starts mattering.
- **Acceptance:** TBD on demand.
## Ground rules (loop-style)
- **Scope:** only `lib/go/**` and this plan. Do not touch `spec/`,
`hosts/`, `shared/`, `lib/guest/**` (read-only consumer at this phase),
or other `lib/<lang>/`.
- **Consume `lib/guest/core/`** for lex/parse/ast/match/layout. Hand-
rolling defeats the chiselling goal.
- **Do NOT extract into `lib/guest/scheduler/` or `lib/guest/static-
types-bidirectional/` from this loop.** Those extractions are gated on
two consumers AND the discipline of writing each consumer
independently. Extraction is its own workstream after Go and the
second consumer both exist.
- **Substrate gaps** → Blockers entry with minimal repro. Don't fix the
substrate from this loop. Belongs to `sx-improvements.md`.
- **NEVER call `sx_build` without timeout awareness** — 600s watchdog.
- **SX files:** `sx-tree` MCP tools ONLY. `sx_validate` after every edit.
- **Worktree:** branch `loops/go`, push `origin/loops/go`. Never `main`,
never `architecture`.
- **Commit granularity:** one feature per commit. Short factual messages:
`go: parse short-decl + 6 tests [consumes-pratt]`. Chisel note at end
in brackets.
- **Plan file:** update Progress log + tick boxes every commit.
- **If blocked** for two iterations on the same issue, add to Blockers
and move on. Phases 1-4 are sequential; Phases 5-8 are largely
independent once 4 lands.
## Chisel discipline (per parent lib-guest plan)
Every commit ends its message with a chisel note in brackets:
- `[consumes-X]` — used `lib/guest/X` kit.
- `[shapes-scheduler]` / `[shapes-static-types-bidirectional]` — revealed
something about what the sister lib-guest kits should look like. Add a
paragraph to the relevant sister plan's design diary.
- `[proposes-Y]` — revealed a gap in another existing kit. Blockers entry
in the kit's plan.
- `[nothing]` — pure Go work that didn't touch substrate or lib/guest
story. Acceptable; if it shows up twice in a row, stop and reflect.
## Go-specific gotchas
- **ASI (automatic semicolon insertion).** Newline becomes `;` after
identifier/literal/`)`/`]`/`}`. Build into the tokenizer; the Go spec's
"Semicolons" section is unusually precise — follow it literally.
- **Untyped constants.** `42` has type `untyped int` until used in a
context that forces a type. The canonical example: `var x float64 = 42
/ 7` — must compute as `untyped int / untyped int = 6` then convert to
`float64 = 6.0`. Wrong: float-coercing eagerly gives 6.0 prematurely.
Wrong: integer-truncating after coercion gives `5.something`. Test it.
- **Methods vs functions.** `func (r Receiver) Method()` is a method
bound to a type; `func Function(r Receiver)` is just a function.
Methods on pointer-receivers vs value-receivers have asymmetric
satisfaction in interfaces — pointer-receiver methods are NOT in the
value's method set for interface satisfaction.
- **Interface satisfaction is structural and silent.** Type satisfies an
interface if its method set contains all the interface's methods.
Lazy check: at every point a value flows into an interface-typed slot.
- **Channels are first-class values.** Pass them, store them, send them
through other channels. Each channel has identity.
- **`select` with `default`** = non-blocking. Without `default`, blocks
until a case is ready.
- **`nil` is typed.** `var x *int` makes x a `(*int)(nil)`. Comparison
`x == nil` works on typed nil; but `var i interface{} = (*int)(nil); i
== nil` is `false` — i holds a typed-nil-of-type-`*int`, not untyped
nil. The classic Go footgun. Test it.
- **Goroutine panic propagation.** A panicking goroutine that doesn't
recover crashes the whole program. Implement faithfully or document
divergence.
- **`defer` in a loop.** Each iteration pushes; they all run on function
return. Common bug; tests should cover.
- **Iteration order of maps.** Spec: unspecified. v1 = sorted by SX-
canonical key order for determinism; document that programs depending
on iteration order are not Go-conformant. Add a `runtime`-package knob
to enable randomisation later.
## Style
- No comments in `.sx` unless non-obvious. Cite Go spec sections inline
for non-obvious decisions (Go's spec is rigorous; citations work).
- No new planning docs — update this plan inline.
- One feature per iteration. Commit. Log. Push. Next.
## Open questions
1. **Module/import model.** Go has packages and import paths. Probably
model "package" as one or more `.sx` files in a directory, no real
import resolution against a remote module graph. Decide in Phase 2.
2. **Goroutine identity.** Spec says goroutines have no identity; the
scheduler does internally. Expose to user code? No (not Go). Expose
for debugging? Yes via a `runtime`-package stub.
3. **Error handling: panic-as-exception vs explicit error returns.** Go
strongly prefers explicit errors. Stdlib stubs follow that: `strconv.
Atoi("x")` returns `(0, err)`, not panic.
4. **Memory model.** Go has a happens-before model for atomics + channel
ops. SX runtime is single-threaded under the scheduler — every channel
op is a synchronization point automatically. Don't model relaxed
memory; document the simplification.
5. **Iteration order of maps.** Already addressed in Gotchas; flagged
here as a known divergence from spec.
## Blockers
### Kit-gap proposals against `lib/guest/ast.sx`
Observed from building the Go parser:
1. **No selector / field-access node.** `obj.field` is a universal shape
across nominally-typed languages — Go, Rust, Swift, TS, JS, Python,
Ruby, Java, C#. The kit ships `ast-app` (function application) but
not `ast-select`. We rolled `(list :select OBJ "field")` locally as
a Go-specific tag. Worth promoting once a second consumer hits the
same need (likely immediately — almost every guest needs it).
2. **No index / subscript node.** `x[i]` is universal across nearly every
guest with arrays/maps. Rolled `(list :index OBJ IDX)` locally.
3. **No slice node.** Go's two- and three-index slice expressions are
distinctive but the basic two-index `x[a:b]` shape covers Python,
Rust, Swift, JS, Ruby slicing too. Rolled
`(list :slice OBJ LOW HIGH MAX)` (LOW/HIGH/MAX may be nil for
omitted indices). MAX-as-fourth-field is Go-specific; the canonical
kit shape could ship as `(list :slice OBJ LOW HIGH)` for the common
case and a separate `:slice3` or `:full-slice` for the Go variant.
Minimal repro: see `lib/go/parse.sx#gp-parse-postfix` + `gp-parse-bracket`.
4. **No "named binding(s) of a type" node.** Building struct types
surfaced a shape that recurs everywhere:
```
(list :field NAMES TYPE)
```
Same shape appears in: struct fields (`x, y int`), func parameters
(`func(a, b int, c string)`), method receivers (`m(a, b int)`),
variable declarations (`var x, y int`). Three Phase-2 sub-deliverables
(struct fields, func decls, var decls) all want this shape. Promoting
it once means Rust struct fields, Swift parameters, TS class fields,
Java method signatures all get a free home. Candidate canonical name:
`ast-binding-group` or `ast-named-of-type`.
5. **No type-expression primitives.** Every statically-typed guest needs
to express types in source. Proposed canonical shapes:
```
(list :ty-name "T") — named type
(list :ty-sel "pkg" "T") — qualified type
(list :ty-ptr T) — pointer to T
(list :ty-slice T) — slice / dynamic array of T
(list :ty-array N T) — fixed array, N is an expr
(list :ty-map K V) — map type (also Python dict, Rust HashMap)
```
The first six are universal: Rust, Swift, TS, Kotlin, Scala, Hack
all need them. Go-specific extensions like `:ty-chan` (channel with
direction) and `:ty-func` (parameter+return) should stay
guest-specific until a second consumer wants them.
Minimal repro: see `lib/go/parse.sx#gp-parse-type`.
### Kit-gap proposals against `lib/guest/lex.sx`
Observed from building the Go tokenizer. Not blocking Phase 2; surfaced
here for the substrate-maintainer / next statically-typed-guest loop:
1. **No `lex-oct-digit?` / `lex-bin-digit?`.** Go's prefixed integer forms
`0o17` and `0b1010` need digit-class predicates that the kit doesn't
provide. We rolled local `gl-oct-digit?` and `gl-bin-digit?`. Rust and
Swift's lexers will need the same. Cheap to promote.
2. **No table-driven longest-prefix matcher.** Go has 47+ operator
sequences with longest-match semantics. Our `gl-match-op` is a
25-clause `cond` ladder; Rust/Swift/TS will each need ~50+. A kit
helper like `(lex-match-longest TABLE SOURCE POS)` that takes a sorted
prefix table would collapse this. Worth proposing once a second
statically-typed guest hits the same pattern.
Minimal repro: see `lib/go/lex.sx#gl-oct-digit?` and `#gl-match-op`.
## Progress log
_Newest first. Append one dated entry per commit._
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: `switch` and `select` statements.
Tagged + tagless switch, multi-value cases, `default`, and select
with recv-into-var / send / bare-recv / default cases. New
`gp-parse-case-body` reads stmts until the next `case`/`default`/`}`
without consuming the terminator. AST shapes:
`(list :switch TAG CASES)`,
`(list :case VALUES BODY)`,
`(list :select CASES)`,
`(list :select-case COMM-STMT BODY)`,
`(list :default BODY)`. With this, **Phase 2 statement coverage
is complete** — type-switch is the one remaining shape (deferred).
+8 tests, parse 169/169, total 298/298. `[shapes-scheduler]` —
sister-plan diary updated with the `:select-case` uniform shape
insight (single kit primitive covers all four Go case kinds; default
vs no-default determines blocking semantics; cross-references to
Erlang's `receive ... after`).
Sister-plan diary update follows.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: concurrency + iteration statements.
`go EXPR`, `defer EXPR`, channel send `ch <- v`, and the four
`for ... range` shapes (no-kv / k-only / k,v / assign-form). New
`gp-for-find-range` pre-scans the for-header to dispatch between
range and C-style/while forms cleanly. Send-stmt detection added to
the LHS-list branch (after lhs, `<-` → send). +9 tests, parse
161/161, total 290/290. `[shapes-scheduler]` — Go's concurrency-
primitive AST shapes (`:go`, `:defer`, `:send`, `:range-for`) all
landed; sister-plan diary updated with the corresponding kit-API
insights (uniform spawn-thunk shape, channel-recv ⇄ iteration
polymorphism at the range-coll dispatch).
Sister-plan diary update follows.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: control-flow statements. `if cond { } [else
{ }]` with chained else-if, `for { }` (infinite), `for cond { }`
(while-like), `for init; cond; post { }` (C-style), `break`,
`continue`, plus `x++` / `x--` inc-dec statements. **Closed the
parser-mode caveat** flagged when composite literals landed:
`gp-no-comp-lit` is a re-entrant counter that suppresses the postfix
`{...}` → composite-lit interpretation inside control-flow condition
positions, matching Go spec § Composite literals. `gp-parse-control-
cond` wraps the increment/decrement so callers can't forget. +11
tests, parse 152/152, total 281/281. `[nothing]` — pure Go parser
shape work; the bidirectional-checker-relevant shapes (cond/body) are
already covered by the earlier `:field` insight.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: statements. First slice covers
`return [exprs]`, short-decl `lhs := exprs`, assignment `lhs = exprs`,
compound assignment (`+= -= *= /= %= &= |= ^= <<= >>= &^=`), bare
expression statements, and nested blocks `{ ... }`. New `gp-parse-stmt`
dispatches on the leading token; `gp-parse-block-body` replaces the
func-decl `:body` sentinel with real `(:block STMTS)`. Existing
func/method tests updated to the new body shape. **Progress guards**
added to `gp-block-body-loop` and `gp-parse-composite-elems` —
unsupported syntax (`if`, `for`, etc.) now advances one token instead
of spinning. `gp-skip-block!` left as dead code; will be deleted once
control-flow stmts land. +9 tests, parse 141/141, total 270/270.
`[nothing]` — pure Go parser work; the cross-language statement
shapes will become a chiselling target once a second statically-typed
guest hits them.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: func declarations. `func f() {}`,
`func add(x, y int) int { ... }`, multi-group params, multi-return,
signature-only (no body), pointer-receiver and value-receiver methods,
nested-brace body. New `gp-parse-decl-param-group` uses a named-greedy
algorithm: collects consecutive `ident [, ident]*` then parses a
type. `gp-skip-block!` brace-balances over the body opaquely; the AST
stores `:body` as a sentinel pending statement parsing. With this,
**all five `:field` binding-group consumers now exist** (struct
fields, var, const, func params, method receivers) — strong cross-
deliverable validation of the `ast-binding-group` kit proposal.
Anonymous-param-list disambiguation (`func(int, string)`) is a known
greedy-parser limitation flagged in plan. +8 tests, parse 132/132,
total 261/261. `[shapes-static-types-bidirectional]` — the consistent
use of `:field` across decls is what the sister kit's bidirectional
checker will use to propagate types from declarations to bindings.
Sister-plan diary update follows.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: declarations — `package N`, `import "p"`,
`var name [TYPE] [= EXPRS]`, `const name [TYPE] [= EXPRS]`,
`type NAME TYPE`. New `gp-parse-top` dispatcher routes the five
decl keywords to `gp-parse-decl` while preserving expression parsing
for everything else. `var` and `const` reuse the `:field` binding-
group shape from Blockers — **first cross-deliverable use of the
proposed kit shape**: struct fields, func params, and now var/const
decls all share the same `(list :field NAMES TYPE)` envelope. `import`
uses canonical `ast-import` directly. Grouped forms (`var (...)`)
and `func` decls deferred. +10 tests, parse 124/124, total 253/253.
`[consumes-ast]` — first concrete use of `ast-import` from the kit;
also validates the `:field` shape across three contexts.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: composite literals. `T{}`, `T{1, 2}`,
`T{X: 1, Y: 2}`, `[]T{...}`, `[N]T{...}`, `map[K]V{...}`,
`pkg.T{...}`, nested composites. AST shape
`(list :composite TYPE-OR-EXPR ELEMS)`; each element is an expression
or `(list :kv KEY VALUE)`. Two parser entry points: type-prefixed
(`gp-parse-primary` adds `[`/`map`/`struct` branches) and
ident-prefixed (postfix loop adds `{` branch). **Known limitation
flagged in plan:** when statement parsing arrives, the postfix `{`
branch will misread `if cond { ... }` as composite literal — needs a
"no-composite-here" parser-mode flag. +8 tests, parse 114/114, total
243/243. `[nothing]` — pure Go parser shape work.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: interface-type expressions. `interface {}`,
`interface { Close() }`, `interface { String() string }`,
`interface { Read([]byte) (int, error) }`, plus embedded interfaces
(`Stringer`, `io.Reader`). AST shape:
`(list :ty-interface ELEMS)` where each element is either
`(list :method NAME PARAMS RESULTS)` or `(list :embed TYPE)`. Method
params reuse `gp-parse-func-type-params` — same anonymous-only shape
as func types. Go 1.18+ type sets (`~int | ~float64`) deferred to
generics work. With this, all Phase-2 **type expressions** are
complete. +8 tests, parse 106/106, total 235/235. `[nothing]` — pure
Go parser; the field-binding-group kit-gap proposal from the previous
commit covers the cross-language angle.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: struct-type expressions. `struct {}`,
`struct { x int }`, `struct { x int; y string }`, `struct { x, y int }`
(shared type), nested struct fields. `gp-parse-struct-fields` walks
field rows tolerating ASI semis; each row is a name list + type. AST:
`(list :ty-struct FIELDS)` with each field `(list :field NAMES TYPE)`.
Embedded fields, tags, and methods deferred. +8 tests, parse 98/98,
total 227/227. `[proposes-ast]` — the `:field` shape (NAMES + TYPE)
recurs in func params, method receivers, var decls; flagged in
Blockers as a unified `ast-binding-group` candidate for the kit.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: func-type expressions. `func()`,
`func() int`, `func(int, string)`, `func(int) string`,
`func() (int, error)`. AST shape `(list :ty-func PARAMS RESULTS)`
where both are lists of type nodes. Results parsing reuses param
parser for the multi-return `(T, T, ...)` case. Anonymous-only
params for now — named params (`func(a int, b string)`) need a
different shape and are required mainly for func DECLARATIONS not
pure func-type expressions. Variadic deferred. Covers nested
func-as-return and chan-of-func. +9 tests, parse 90/90, total 219/219.
`[nothing]` — pure Go parser; type AST proposals already in Blockers.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: type expressions — slice `[]T`, array
`[N]T`, map `map[K]V`, chan in all three directions (`chan T`,
`chan<- T`, `<-chan T`). `gp-parse-type` now dispatches on
`*`/`[`/`map`/`chan`/`<-`/ident; each branch recurses for nested
types. Channel direction is `:both`/`:send`/`:recv`. AST stays
Go-specific tagged lists — kit has no type primitives at all.
Covers nested types end-to-end (slice-of-pointer, slice-of-slice,
map-with-slice-value, chan-of-map, pointer-to-slice). **Parse
acceptance bar (80+) crossed: +11 tests, parse 81/81, total 210/210.**
Func / struct / interface types and generics still pending in Phase 2.
`[proposes-ast]` — surfaces concrete type-node proposals (slice / array
/ map are universal across statically-typed guests; channel direction
is Go-specific). Logged in Blockers.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: type assertion `v.(T)` postfix form.
Postfix `.` branch now disambiguates between `.field` (selector) and
`.(...)` (type assertion) by peeking at the next token. New
`gp-parse-type` handles the minimum needed: named (`int`, `MyType`),
qualified (`pkg.T`), pointer (`*T`, `**T`). AST shapes are
Go-specific tagged lists — kit has no notion of types at all yet
(this is a meta-gap: full bidirectional types arrive in Phase 3, but
even the parser needs a type substrate). Covers chained,
call-result, after-selector, and binary-precedence interactions. +9
tests, parse 70/70, total 199/199. `[nothing]`.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: index `x[i]` and slice `x[a:b]` /
`x[a:b:c]` postfix forms. New `gp-parse-bracket` + `gp-parse-bracket-expr`
branch off the same postfix loop as calls/selectors. AST: Go-specific
`(list :index OBJ IDX)` and `(list :slice OBJ LOW HIGH MAX)` —
LOW/HIGH/MAX may be nil for omitted indices. Two more kit gaps logged
(no `:index`, no `:slice` in canonical AST). Permissive on `a[1::3]`.
Covers: literal idx, var idx, expr idx, string idx, chained `a[0][1]`,
mixed `a[0].field`, full slice with three indices. +12 tests, parse
61/61, total 190/190. `[proposes-ast]`.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: postfix forms — function calls `f(a, b)`
via canonical `ast-app`, and member access `x.field` via Go-specific
`(list :select OBJ "field")`. The AST kit has no selector node;
logged in Blockers as `[proposes-ast]` — every nominally-typed guest
will hit the same gap, worth promoting on the next consumer. Postfix
loop sits between unary and primary so calls bind tighter than unary
(`-f(x)` = `-(f(x))`). Covers nested calls, chained selectors,
methods `obj.m(x)`, mixed precedence. +12 tests, parse 49/49, total
178/178. `[consumes-ast proposes-ast]`.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: unary prefix operators (`+`, `-`, `!`, `^`,
`*`, `&`, `<-`). `gp-parse-unary` is recursive (`!!x`) and sits between
`gp-parse-expr` and `gp-parse-primary` so unary always binds tighter
than any binary. Symbols `+ - * & ^` are shared with binary; the
positional split (expression-start vs mid-expression) disambiguates
cleanly without lookback. Unary nodes are single-arg `ast-app`. +11
tests, parse 37/37, total 166/166. `[nothing]` — pure Go parser work.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 cont.: binary operators via Pratt precedence
climbing. `gp-pratt-loop` consumes `pratt-op-lookup` against
`go-precedence-table`; left-assoc bumps right-min by 1, right-assoc
keeps prec. Binary op nodes are `(ast-app (ast-var OP) [LHS RHS])` —
uses the canonical `ast-app` shape rather than inventing a Go-specific
binary node. Covers: equal-prec left-to-right, `*` tighter than `+`,
`&&` tighter than `||`, comparison tighter than `&&`, long chains.
+9 tests, parse 26/26, total 155/155. `[consumes-pratt]`.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 2 first slice: `lib/go/parse.sx` parser scaffold.
Defines `go-precedence-table` using `lib/guest/pratt.sx` entry shape
`(NAME PREC ASSOC)` — five Go precedence levels, all left-associative
per Go spec § Operator precedence. `go-parse` tokenises via
`go-tokenize`, then `gp-parse-primary` reads one literal / identifier
and emits a canonical AST node via `lib/guest/ast.sx`'s `ast-literal`
/ `ast-var`. parse 17/17, lex still 129/129, total 146/146.
`[consumes-pratt consumes-ast]`.
- 2026-05-27 — **Phase 1 complete.** Operator-set audit: added missing
`~` (Go 1.18+ generics type-set), exhaustive op coverage tests grouped
by category. Two kit gaps observed and logged in Blockers:
`lex-oct-digit?`/`lex-bin-digit?` predicates + `lex-match-longest`
table-driven prefix matcher — both useful for future statically-typed
guests. +6 tests, lex 129/129. `[proposes-lex]`. Phase 2 (parser) next.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 1 cont.: raw string literals (backtick-delimited).
Multi-line, no escape processing, `\r` stripped per Go spec § String
literals. Same `"string"` token type as interpreted strings — parsers
/ type checkers don't need to distinguish. +9 tests, lex 123/123.
`[nothing]` — pure Go work; raw strings don't touch the substrate or
lib/guest story.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 1 cont.: decimal float + imaginary literals.
`3.14`, `.5`, `1.`, `1e10`, `1.5e-3`, `2i`, `3.14i`. `gl-finish-number!`
handles exponent + `i` suffix; `gl-read-number!` returns the type
string (int/float/imag). ASI trigger list extended to float/imag.
Greedy-grammar pin: `1.method` lexes as `float ident`. Hex floats
(`0x1.fp0`) deferred. +22 tests, lex 114/114. `[consumes-lex]`.
- 2026-05-27 — Phase 1 cont.: prefixed integer literals (`0x..`, `0X..`,
`0b..`, `0B..`, `0o..`, `0O..`, legacy `0123`) + underscore separators
in any digit run. Dispatch in `gl-read-number!`; consumes
`lex-hex-digit?` from the kit. +14 tests, lex 92/92. `[consumes-lex]`.
- 2026-05-26 — Phase 1 first slice: `lib/go/lex.sx` tokenizer consuming
`lib/guest/lex.sx` predicates. 25 keywords, ident/int/string/rune lits,
line+block comments, common operators, automatic semicolon insertion per
Go spec § Semicolons (newline / EOF / block-comment-with-newline triggers).
Scoreboard + conformance.sh wired. 78/78 tests. `[consumes-lex]`.
- 2026-05-26 — Plan rewritten to integrate the lib/guest framework
(chiselling discipline, sister plans for scheduler + bidirectional
types, type-checker phase added, conformance scoreboard model adopted).
Original 2026-04-26 draft preserved in git history. Loop not yet
kicked off; Phase 1 (tokenizer) is the first iteration when this loop
spins up.