FIRST - A process language.

• Author Larry B. Daniel
• Procedures belong to the operating system.
• The language goal is to translate math into the computer.
• Started June 2026, expect daily progress, maybe weekly.
• Test programs to show translation to C programs that compile and run.
• very simple subset of the ALGOL language without the complexity.
• If you overcometh look-at-fear, your human intelligence can program first programs

Build

• Get flex and make it: https://github.com/westes/flex
• flex -8 first.l
• cc lex.yy.c -o first -lfl
• ./first < test.fst > test.c
• cc test.c -o test
• ./test

Combining with pipes to make a procedure

• UNIX and LINUX have the pipe operator, |, in the shell enviroment of the Terminal.
• ls -s | sort -n for example combines 2 processes ls and sort to create a procedure of listing files sorted from smallest to largest

What Works

• 2 datatypes: INTEGER, DENOTED
• YIELD operator for CPU scheduling for goto loops that are too tight.
• RANDOM operator for clean random from the CPU
• INPUT and OUTPUT for standard input and output for literals and variables.
• RETURN for return a small integer result to the Operating System. See zdatest.fst.
• ? symbol for isomorphic compare.
• Assignment of the COUNT of an assigned DENOTED to an INTEGER; See test5.fst
• OUTPUT a color, reset of color, or clear and position at top left. test7.fst has the example.
• assignment with two integers with an arithmetic work. See pi.fst.
• JUMP label or GOTO label; where a label left justified and ending with a colon is labeled.
• IN and OUT use Linux iopl(3) so inb/outb run in ring 3. Needs root or CAP_SYS_RAWIO. See test6.fst.

What Fails

• Assignment of literal INTEGER to VARIABLE: instead of A:=0; try A := 0;
• In general, spaces are required between and betwixt the elements of the language.

Limits

• 256 character length DENOTATIONS. This is due to an arbitrary choice.
• INTEGER is signed 128 bit values.
• RANDOM is signed 128 bit values.
• RETURN is operating system dependent.

Examples

• zdatest.fst returns a random integer.
• ./first < zdatest.fst | cc -x c - -o zdatest
• Other examples are similar

zda - A reality control, a work in progress.

• zda.fst is a first source
• The purpose is to out others that have a zero score.
• The compile procedure: ./first < zda.fst | cc -o zda -x c -
• Run it and see it run with the top utility.