#
# This file is part of Perl-Types
#
# This software is copyright (c) 2025 by Auto-Parallel Technologies, Inc.
#
# This is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under
# the same terms as the Perl 5 programming language system itself.
#
# [[[ HEADER ]]]
# ABSTRACT: the Perl data type system
package Perl::Types;
use strict;
use warnings;
use Perl::Config;
our $VERSION = 0.008_000;
# [[[ INCLUDES ]]]
# DEV NOTE: `use Perl::Types;` is just an object-oriented wrapper around the `use perltypes;` pragma
use perltypes;
# [[[ EXPORTS ]]]
# export all symbols imported from essential modules; includes (Data::Dumper, English, Carp, and POSIX) via Perl::Config
use Exporter qw(import);
our @EXPORT = (@perltypes::EXPORT);
1; # end of package
__END__
=head1 NAME
Perl::Types - the Perl data type system
=head1 SYNOPSIS
# the following three styles are functionally equivalent,
# only choose one:
use Perl::Types; # OO style
# OR
use perltypes; # pragma style
# OR
use types; # pragma style, shortened
# declare a typed scalar
my integer $i = 42;
# declare a typed compound reference
my arrayref::integer $arr = [1, 2, 3];
=head1 DESCRIPTION
Perl::Types defines package namespaces for core Perl data types and nested compound
reference types using the C<::> scope resolution operator. It enables explicit typing
of scalars, arrays, and hashes in your Perl code.
Note that `use Perl::Types;` and `use perltypes;` and `use types;` all have the exact
same effect; these options are provided to please both OO and pragma style preferences.
Please choose one and use it throughout your entire codebase, to avoid confusion.
Use of the Perl data type system also provides the added benefit of pre-emptively
preparing your Perl source code for future optimization by the Perl compiler.
Perl::Types is currently in a beta release phase, and is considered stable enough for
monitored use in commercial or production code.
=head2 Data Types vs Type Constraints
Do not confuse the Perl data type system with any of Perl's numerous type constraint
libraries. If you are using any software other than Perl::Types to access or manage
data types, then you are actually using type constraints.
Data type systems access the real underlying data types, which are linked to the actual
computer hardware resources and are not subjective in any way. On the other hand,
type contraints access the transient data values and attempt to guess what the real
data types might be, which is an entirely subjective process. While these may seem
similar on the surface, and are often purposefully conflated due to Perl's checkered
history with data type support, they are in fact very different approaches to software
development and should be clearly understood as such.
TL;DR: Type systems should be utilized instead of type contraints.
=head2 Scalar Types
Scalars contain a single piece of data, and are the foundation of all other data types.
The five basic scalar data types are:
=over
=item * boolean
=item * integer
=item * number
=item * character
=item * string
=back
=head2 Compound Reference Types
Compound types are comprised of scalar types contained inside one or more
nested references, such as:
=over
=item * arrayref::integer
=item * arrayref::number
=item * arrayref::string
=item * hashref::integer
=item * hashref::number
=item * hashref::string
=item * arrayref::arrayref::integer
=item * hashref::hashref::arrayref::number
=item * hashref::arrayref::hashref::string
=back
=cut
=head1 EXAMPLES
=head2 Scalar Types
Declaring & defining scalar variables:
my boolean $b = 1;
my integer $i = -123;
my number $n = 3.14;
my character $c = 'a';
my string $s = 'hello';
=head2 One-Dimensional Array References
Declaring & defining array references:
my arrayref::integer $ai = [1, 2, 3];
my arrayref::number $an = [3.14, 2.718];
my arrayref::string $as = ['foo', 'bar'];
=head2 Two-Dimensional Array References
Declaring & defining nested array references:
my arrayref::arrayref::integer $a2i = [[1, 2], [3, 4]];
my arrayref::arrayref::string $a2s = [['a', 'b'], ['c', 'd']];
=head2 One-Dimensional Hash References
Declaring & defining hash references:
my hashref::integer $hi = { a => 1, b => 2 };
my hashref::number $hn = { pi => 3.14 };
my hashref::string $hs = { foo => 'bar' };
=head2 Two-Dimensional Hash References
Declaring & defining nested hash references:
my hashref::hashref::string $hhs = {
out1 => { in1a => 'howdy', in1b => 'pardner' },
out2 => { in2a => 'adios', in2b => 'amigo' }
};
=head2 Nested Hash/Array Structures
Declaring & defining mixed nested structures:
my hashref::arrayref::integer $hai = {
arr1 => [1, 2, 3],
arr2 => [4, 5, 6]
};
my arrayref::hashref::string $ahs = [
{ in1a => 'howdy', in1b => 'pardner' },
{ in2a => 'adios', in2b => 'amigo' }
];
=head2 Constants
Declaring & defining scalar constants:
use constant P => my integer $TYPED_P = 23;
use constant PI => my number $TYPED_PI = 3.141_59;
use constant PIE => my string $TYPED_PIE = 'pecan';
=head2 Subroutines
Declaring subroutine input parameters & output return values:
sub pies_are_round {
{ my void $RETURN_TYPE };
print 'in pies_are_round(), having PIE() = ', PIE(), "\n";
return;
}
sub pi_r_squared {
{ my number $RETURN_TYPE };
( my number $r ) = @ARG;
my number $area = PI() * $r ** 2;
print 'in pi_r_squared(), have $area = PI() * $r ** 2 = ', $area, "\n";
return $area;
}
sub p_is_pentagonal {
{ my string $RETURN_TYPE };
( my string $base_text, my integer $repeat_count ) = @ARG;
my string $repeated_text = $base_text x $repeat_count;
print 'in p_is_pentagonal(), have $repeated_text = \'', $repeated_text, '\'', "\n";
return $repeated_text;
}
=head2 Object-Orientation
Declaring & instantiating objects:
my Some::Class $my_object = Some::Class->new();
$my_object->some_method(5);
=head1 COMING SOON
Documentation:
=over
=item * More details & examples
=item * Type-checking instructions
=item * Arrays & hashes by value
=item * Arrays & hashes of objects
=item * Class definitions
=back
The following data types are partially implemented and planned for future releases:
=over
=item * nonsigned_integer
=item * gmp_integer
=item * filehandleref
=item * void
=item * unknown
=item * scalartype
=back
=head1 SEE ALSO
L<The Perl Compiler|RPerl>
L<The Perl::Types Committee|https://perlcommunity.org/types>
=head1 AUTHOR
B<William N. Braswell, Jr.>
L<mailto:[email protected]>
=cut