I have wrote a proposal to send it to openjfx-compiler project… But I found that some of features I propose is already implemented in the language… see upcoming post. I feel my self as Gray being overtaking by Bell 
But positive side is that I am on the same page with people creating this language 
Anyway that is what I wanted to sent to openjfx-compiler mail.list:
Proposal to have {} to evaluate to some value.
I was inspired for this idea by if-then-else construct.
As far as I remember it was the old ALGOL-60 language which enables “IF cond THEN v1 ELSE v2″ first, and that time it looks exactly the same syntax.
However I think it would only look OK in Pascal or Modula-2, but not in JavaFX.
Because JavaFX tends to be expression language I propose to have { } construct to evaluate to some value. How it could help?
1. if-then-else will not be needed any longer one could write:
var result = if (operation = "-") {x-y} else {x+y}
or even better example:
var result = if (operation = "-") {x-y} else if (operation = "+") {x + y} else if (operation = "*") {x * y} else if (operation ="/") { if(y == 0) {throw DivisionByZeroException{};} else {x/y}};
2. we could write as simple as (w/o return):
function mediana(a: Integer, b:Integer) {
(a + b) / 2 // NOTE: semicolon (;) to be ommited
}
3. we could put some additional computation in { } only the last one operator(expression) in { } will be a result expression.
/**
* Overflow protected version of mediana
*/
function mediana(a: Integer, b:Integer) {
var sumOfHalves = a/2 + b/2;
var remainders = a%2 + b%2;
sumOfHalves + remainders
}
4. I have some ideas about JavaFX variant of servlets/JSP. Look! how pretty could look {}-expression in the strings, it could substitute both JSP’s expression (<%= %>) and JSP’s scriptlet (<% %>):
<%
String title = request.getAttribute("title");
%>
<html>
<%
if ( (!"".equals(title) {
%>
<title><%= escape(title) %></title>
<%
}
else {
%>
<title>Home Page</title>
<%
}
%>
...
-- BECOMES --
out.write("<html>
<title>{
var title = request.getAttribute("title");
if ("" <> title) {
"<title>{escape(title)}</title>" //NOTE: this "if" is an "if" between 2 string expressions!
}
else {
"<title>Home Page</title>"
}
}</title>
...
");
5. the only exception where there should not be {}-expression is finally {}-block of try-catch-finally:
transactionOK = false;
try {
...
...
transactionOK = true;
someValue // some expression
}
catch(SomeExceptionToHandle e) {
transactionOK = true;
someOtherValue // some expression
}
catch(SomeCriticalExpection e) {
throw AnotherException{};
}
finally {
if (treansactionOK) {
t.commit();
}
else {
t.rolback();
}
// here expression may not be set
}
6. (OPTIONALY) for cycles for and while, evaluation of {}-block may automaically create sequence:
var primesUpTo100:Integer[] = while(x <= 100) {
if (isPrime(x)) {
x++
}
else {
x++;
null
}
}
-- OR LESS TRICKY --
var primesUpTo100 = while(x <= 100) {
if (isPrime(x)) {
var prime = x;
x = x + 1;
prime
}
else {
x = x + 1;
null
}
}
7. The similair feature exists in C language: it is comma operator (,) however its idea is vice-versa — to unstructurize code and write everithing in one line: y = (x=1, z=2, x*z);
Tags: JavaFX
