inform7/docs-src/compiler.inweb

Title: The Inform 7 compiler
Author: Graham Nelson

@ The task of the Inform 7 compiler is to take natural-language source text
and "transpile" it down to lower-level, more orthodox code which another
compiler can take the rest of the way. Usually, but not necessarily, that
other compiler is the typeless but otherwise C-like Inform 6 (1996-2003).

Inform offers three compiler tools: //inbuild//, //inform7//
and //inter//. These represent the front end (build control, resource
management), the middle part (actual compilation), and the back end (code
generation, assimilation of kits), but really they are three points of access
to the same code base. See //inbuild: Manual//, //inform7: Manual//, //inter: Manual//
and //inbuild: Reference Card//, //inform7: Reference Card//, //inter: Reference Card//.

Each tool has its own CLI (or "command-line interface") but is otherwise
divided up into "modules", many shared between two or even all three tools.
= (hyperlinked text as BoxArt)
        INBUILD                  INFORM7                   INTER     
    +-------------+          +-------------+          +-------------+    
    |   //inbuild//   |          |   //inform7//   |          |    //inter//    |
    |    (cli)    |          |    (cli)    |          |    (cli)    |
    +-------------+          +-------------+          +-------------+    
+----------------------------------------------+      .             .
|  //supervisor//-module                           |      .             .
+----------------------------------------------+      .             .
    .             .      +---------------------+      .             .
    .             .      |     //core//-module     |      .             .
    .             .      |    //kinds//-module     |      .             .
    .             .      |      //if//-module      |      .             .
    .             .      |  //multimedia//-module  |      .             .
    .             .      |    //index//-module     |      .             .
    .             .      +---------------------+      .             .
    .             .      +----------------------------------------------+
    .             .      |                            //bytecode//-module   |
    .             .      |                            //building//-module   |
    .             .      |                            //codegen//-module    |
    .             .      +----------------------------------------------+
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  SERVICES              shared //linguistics//-module                      |
|                         shared //lexicon//-module                         |
|                        shared //inflections//-module                      |
|                         shared //problems//-module                        |
|                          shared //syntax//-module                         |
|                          shared //words//-module                          |
|                           shared //arch//-module                          |
|                           shared //html//-module                          |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  FOUNDATION      //foundation//-module (in inweb repository)              |
|                   (Posix or Windows-related functions)                |
|                           (standard C library)                        |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
=
The three tools each use a "services" library, made up of seven modules
providing services useful for natural language-based programs (though only
//inform7// needs them all). At one time this was going to be called "Second
Foundation" or possibly "Foundation and Empire", because there is also
//foundation// underneath, a library of utility functions provided by //inweb//.

@ That's a lot: for code-spelunkers, this is a veritable limestone hillside
of points of entry. Where to begin? Here are some suggested entrances:
(a) See //supervisor: What This Module Does// for an overview of the
build-management process.
(b) Or take that on trust, and see //core: What This Module Does// for
an overview of how Inform 7 basically works.
(c) If you're more interested in the low-level representation of Inter code,
and how to generate from it, see //bytecode: What This Module Does//.