On Fri, Feb 1, 2013 at 10:28 AM, Eliot Miranda <eliot.miranda@gmail.com> wrote:

On Fri, Feb 1, 2013 at 9:47 AM, Terry Raymond <traymond@craftedsmalltalk.com> wrote:

I constantly run into the situation where I am incorporating either HTML or javascript
in my methods. The problem I run into is the smalltalk string quote(�). It is a real pain

to double quote it, and don�t even try to copy and paste external javascript.
�
So, I think it would be real helpful to have some other funky string quote like

##{{ }}## or some sequence that is very unlikely to occur in another language.
�
Has anyone done this or even thought about it?

David Leibs has been pushing a well-thought-through facility he calls (and other systems name) "quasi-quote". �Here, a string literal contains escape sequences, a little like printf, that allow one to substitute values. �Dave's syntax uses square brackets to escape into Smalltalk. �So that (IIRC) you say things like

� � '<html><head></head><body><H1>[myHeading]</H1>'

which compiles to something analogous to

� � String streamContents: [:s| s nextPutAll:�'<html><head></head><body><H1>'; nextPutAll: myHeading asString; nextPutAll: '</H1>]

But this excellent suggestion has fallen on deaf ears (my own included) for more than a decade.

<blush>, saw quote, brian farted, now realize this is nothing to do with your issue Terry. �Apologies</blush>.

But you could come up with some convention to embed in quasi-quote to change the string quote, right? �he thing is to choose your escape character(s) with care. �You need a quote to escape to and from processing ($[ & $]). �You need a literal quote ( $\ ?). �Do you need a third quote to change quote interpretation? �Or do you need a third quote that turns off single quote as end of string? �eg. say $^ indicates no close quote until the matching $^. �So the following

� � '^'my single-quoted string'^'

denotes

� � '''my single-quoted string'''

and I realize I can't remember how David's proposal distinguishes between quasi-quote strings and normal Smalltalk strings.

�
Terry
�
===========================================================
Terry Raymond
Crafted Smalltalk
80 Lazywood Ln.

Tiverton, RI� 02878
(401) 624-4517�� traymond@craftedsmalltalk.com

===========================================================
�

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--
best,
Eliot