templates and files.

[Daniel Keep]

kenny wrote:
> I was looking at h3retic's raytracer, and it got me thinking about using 
>  d's templates as a parser. Seriously thinking actually. The template 
> language is strong enough, do you suppose we could use some of the 
> phobos file functions inside of D templates to allow for file input and 
> output?
> 
> Uses I can think of off of the top of my head:
> 
> 1. instead of having to store revision number in a d file, the template 
> can look in .svn/entries or get the output of the linux command "date"
> 2. preparsed resources, including bitmaps, icons, and meshes (for games?)
> 3. preparsed interpreted languages (compiled DMDScript, lol?)
> 4. XML build script options
> 5. gui that is built off of an XML -- at compile time
> 
> 
> My primary use would be to generate D code based on an external script. 
> For example, I could write generic code, then have a configuration file, 
> which will be parsed for the directives at compile time instead of 
> execution time. Mostly thinking about #5 though.
> 
> Kenny

One wonders why you would not just write D code that generates D code as 
output...  which is *vaguely* what templates are, anyway.

	-- Daniel

P.S.  Interesting factoid: Haskell is in the odd position of having a 
type system so powerful, it's Turing-complete.  Now THAT'S scary.

P.P.S.  Actually, scary would be a program that generates D code written 
in D, compiled to a turing machine tape, which is run by code written in 
the C preprocessor, which is run by a CPP written in the Haskell type 
system, compiled for another turing machine built using LEGO. *brainsplode*