examples

Meta-Notation Examples

This directory contains examples demonstrating the use of meta-notation.

Running Examples

First, build the project:

npm install
npm run build

Then run the examples:

node dist/examples/basic.js

What is Meta-Notation?

Meta-notation is a simple, language-agnostic notation system that parses common delimiters found in most programming languages:

• Parentheses: ()
• Curly braces: {}
• Square brackets: []
• Single quotes: ''
• Double quotes: ""
• Backticks: ` `

Unlike more complex notation systems, meta-notation intentionally avoids language-specific features (like the : self-reference in links-notation), making it compatible with a much larger set of programming languages.

Use Cases

1. Code Analysis: Parse code structure without full language parsing
2. Syntax Highlighting: Quick delimiter matching
3. Code Transformation: Preserve structure while modifying content
4. Multi-language Tools: Build tools that work across many languages
5. Educational: Understand code structure at a basic level

Design Philosophy

Meta-notation is inspired by:

• links-notation - A more complex notation system with self-references
• metalanguage - An earlier meta programming language concept

The key difference is simplicity and universality. By focusing only on common delimiters and avoiding language-specific syntax, meta-notation can parse code from JavaScript, Python, C++, Java, Go, Rust, and many other languages with the same simple grammar.