Command Line Options

There are several command options for SparForte.

• --break (or -b) - allow breakout to a shell prompt on a SIGINT or a script error. (e.g. a control-c will give you a shell prompt.) Use "return" to continue execution or "logout" to terminate script. A breakout prompt will allow you to assign values to constants, such as a for loop index, with a warning.
• --check (or -c) - check the syntax of a script but do not run the script
• --debug (or -d) -  enable pragma debug's and assert's.  Without this, pragma debug has no effect.
• --exec (or -e) -  the script path is not a path but a script to execute.
• --gcc-errors (or -g) - show simple gcc-style error messages to be compatible with smart editors and IDEs. Also disables bold and inverse printing in error messages.
• --help (or -h) - show help on command line options
• --import-all (or -n) - declare and import all environment variables when SparForte starts
• --L - specify additional SPAR_LIBRARY_PATH directories (see below)
• --login (or -l) - simulate a login shell
• --no-check (or -n) - run without checking the syntax first
• --restricted (or -r) - run as a restricted shell.
• --test (or -t) -  enable pragma test's and assert's.  Without this, pragma test has no effect.
• --trace (or -x) - same as "trace true". Turn on tracing.
• --verbose (or -v) - show interpreter progress
• --version (or -V) - show version of SparForte and exit
• -- - explicitly end of shell options. Use this before specifying files on the command line that contain a leading "-".

Environment Variables Affecting SparForte

When you run the "spar" command, certain variables affect how SparForte runs.

• PATH - the command search path (always imported)
• PWD - the present (current) working directory (always imported)
• OLDPWD - the last PWD (always imported)
• HOME - the user's home directory (always imported)
• TERM - the user's terminal emulation (always imported)
• SHELL - the user's shell (always imported)
• SPAR_LIBRARY_PATH - the search path for loadable components (always imported)

 AdaScript versus GCC

 Case Sensitivity

 Reserved Words

 Comments

 Literals

 Bourne Shell Word Expansions

 Fundamental Types

 User-defined Types

 Enumerated Types

 Arrays

 Records

 Basic Assignment

 The @ and % Operands

 Command Argument Shortcuts

 Redirection and Pipelines

 Command Line Interaction

 Built-in Shell Commands

 The Current Directory

 Database Commands

 Flow of Control

 Other Statements/ Subprograms

 External Commands

 Block Statements and Subprograms

 TCP/IP Sockets

 Numeric Formatting with Put

 Interpreter Directives

 Command Line Options

 Command Reference

 ASCII and Latin_1 Character Sets

 Common Error Messages

 Common PHP Functions and the SparForte Equivalent