Getting started with Mu

# Yes yes, a hello world program
print('Hello World!')

This is a (hopefully complete) guide to the Mu language. The easiest way to learn Mu is interactively, so I would suggest downloading the Mu executable so you can play around with the examples. Anyways, lets get started!

Types

Mu is designed to be as simple to understand as possible. To achieve this, Mu is built around a small set of simple concepts that are composable in powerful ways.

Mu has only five types. Understanding these types and how they complement each other is the key to understanding Mu.

Nil

let a = nil
let b = _

Nil represents the complete lack of value. Any uninitialized variables default to the value nil and assigning nil to a variable effectively deletes it.

Numbers

let a = 2
let b = -3.14
let c = 0.3e-22
let d = 0xfc80
let e = 0b1p16
let f = inf

The number type represents real numbers. Implemented as floating-point values, numbers are limited only by the precision of the processor. The precision is garunteed to span the maximum size of Mu’s data structures, so I wouldn’t worry too much about integer rounding errors.

Infinity is a special value that represents the numeric upper-limit. Greater than any other number except itself, infinity is useful for representing unbounded arguments.

Strings

let a = 'hi'
let b = "hello"
let c = 'a\nb\nd'
let d = "\0\0\0\0"
let e = '\x68\x69!'

The string type represents an immutable array of bytes. The length is stored with the string allowing any 8bit values. Strings are interned to minimize memory consumption and allow constant-time equality tests.

Unlike most interpreted languages, values are not automatically coerced into strings unless explicitly casted with repr to avoid surprising mistakes.

Tables

let a = ['x': 1, 'y': 2]
let b = [1: 'x', 2: 'y']
let c = [1, 'a', 2, 'b', 3, 'c']
let d = [x: 1, y: 2]

a['x'] # looks up 1
a.y    # looks up 2
a.z    # looks up nil

The table type represents an associative array of key/value pairs. Implemented as a hashtable, tables allow average constant-time lookup and assignment. Any Mu type can be used as a key or value, with nil representing a missing entry. Tables are surprisingly powerful and can emulate many of the data-structures found in more complex languages.

Functions

let a = fn() -> 1
let b = fn(a) -> a
fn c() -> 3

a()  # returns 1
b()  # returns nil
b(2) # returns 2
c()  # returns 3
c(2) # returns 3

Functions are first-class values in Mu, which means functions get their own type like any other value. Functions have lexical scope which allows them to contain state and support composability. Functions offer a very flexible representation of computation in Mu.

Don’t worry if the function type seems ill-defined right now. As functions are central to Mu, their syntax and utility will be covered in more detail.

Mu script