ext::XS-APItest-KeywordRPN::KeywordRPN(3p) Perl Programmers Reference Guide
NAMEXS::APItest::KeywordRPN - write arithmetic expressions in RPN
SYNOPSIS
use XS::APItest::KeywordRPN qw(rpn calcrpn);
$triangle = rpn($n $n 1 + * 2 /);
calcrpn $triangle { $n $n 1 + * 2 / }
DESCRIPTION
This module supplies plugged-in keywords, using the new mechanism in
Perl 5.11.2, that allow arithmetic to be expressed in reverse Polish
notation, in an otherwise Perl program. This module has serious
limitations and is not intended for real use: its purpose is only to
test the keyword plugin mechanism. For that purpose it is part of the
Perl core source distribution, and is not meant to be installed.
RPN expression syntax
Tokens of an RPN expression may be separated by whitespace, but such
separation is usually not required. It is required only where
unseparated tokens would look like a longer token. For example, "12 34
+" can be written as "12 34+", but not as "1234 +".
An RPN expression may be any of:
1234
A sequence of digits is an unsigned decimal literal number.
$foo
An alphanumeric name preceded by dollar sign refers to a Perl
scalar variable. Only variables declared with "my" or "state" are
supported. If the variable's value is not a native integer, it
will be converted to an integer, by Perl's usual mechanisms, at the
time it is evaluated.
A B "+"
Sum of A and B.
A B "-"
Difference of A and B, the result of subtracting B from A.
A B "*"
Product of A and B.
A B "/"
Quotient when A is divided by B, rounded towards zero. Division by
zero generates an exception.
A B "%"
Remainder when A is divided by B with the quotient rounded towards
zero. Division by zero generates an exception.
Because the arithmetic operators all have fixed arity and are
postfixed, there is no need for operator precedence, nor for a grouping
operator to override precedence. This is half of the point of RPN.
An RPN expression can also be interpreted in another way, as a sequence
of operations on a stack, one operation per token. A literal or
variable token pushes a value onto the stack. A binary operator pulls
two items off the stack, performs a calculation with them, and pushes
the result back onto the stack. The stack starts out empty, and at the
end of the expression there must be exactly one value left on the
stack.
OPERATORS
These are the operators being added to the Perl language.
rpn(EXPRESSION)
This construct is a Perl expression. EXPRESSION must be an RPN
arithmetic expression, as described above. The RPN expression is
evaluated, and its value is returned as the value of the Perl
expression.
calcrpn VARIABLE { EXPRESSION }
This construct is a complete Perl statement. (No semicolon should
follow the closing brace.) VARIABLE must be a Perl scalar "my"
variable, and EXPRESSION must be an RPN arithmetic expression as
described above. The RPN expression is evaluated, and its value is
assigned to the variable.
BUGS
This module only performs arithmetic on native integers, and only a
small subset of the arithmetic operations that Perl offers. This is
due to it being intended only for demonstration and test purposes.
The RPN parser is liable to leak memory when a parse error occurs. It
doesn't leak on success, however.
SEE ALSO
Devel::Declare, "PL_keyword_plugin" in perlapi
AUTHOR
Andrew Main (Zefram) <zefram@fysh.org>
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 2009 Andrew Main (Zefram) <zefram@fysh.org>
LICENSE
This module is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it
under the same terms as Perl itself.
perl v5.12.2 September 28, 2010
