Second prototype of قلب’s code calligraphy. This one says مرحبا يا عالم (hello world), which isn’t executable code, but code-related and fun anyway.

First prototype of قلب’s code calligraphy, done in square kufic with glass tiles. It says “لكل ن” (for each n) and matches the bottom-right part of the bubble sort calligraphy prototype on the language’s site.

In preparation for Eyebeam’s Open Studios later this week.

Both Zajal and قلب will be on display at Eyebeam’s Open Studios this Friday and Saturday! Come by and check them out!

Zajal’s installation will show off it’s live coding of hardware, which Haitham Ennasr used for an interactive art piece last year.

Mockup of قلب’s new Scheme inspired syntax. I’ve been trying to arrive at a syntax that translates better into calligraphy than the first mockup, and with the parentheses removed, this syntax is nothing but words and numbers.

The parentheses are needed for the code to run correctly, but there is a precedent in leaving off dots, vowel markings, and punctuation in calligraphy, sacrificing readability for elegance.

The Scheme-like syntax is also easier to write an interpreter for.

The code was typed into TextMate, so it is unhighlighted and left-aligned. The English equivalent would be:

Eyebeam is renovating its entrance to turn it into a more public, multi-use exhibition and presentation space as well as a bookstore. Donate!

http://languagecanvas.herokuapp.com/:

My Language Canvas is live!

It uses a lightweight syntax to specify its highlighting, local storage to save your work seamlessly, and of course its completely live. It still has a bunch of issues, but it works well enough that I’ve been using it every day.

Head over, check it out, let me know what you think of it. Code will be on GitHub soon.

Untyped lambda calculus represented by cut out alligators. A great reminder of how computers aren’t necessary for computation, just convenient.

I’m putting together this language design tool that lets you specify basic syntax highlighting for a fictional language as you develop it. It helps avoid staring at unhighlighted code during a language’s initial sketches. It is built on CodeMirror.

The top pane is where you sketch in your language. Write whatever you want there. The lower pane is where you specify the syntax highlighting as pattern, token pairs.

New Zajal documentation under development:

zajaldev:

I’m working with friend and legendary web designer Chris Driscoll to rebuild the documentation platform from scratch. This Heroku URL is where we’ll be developing the site. What’s up there now is an initial prototype, so stay tuned for changes coming soon!

http://قلب-لغة-برمجة.com:

قلب’s site is online with a description of the project and some sample code. It will grow into a full site soon, so keep an eye on it!

For those having trouble with the internationalized domain name, the site is mirrored at http://qlblang.org/, although this is certainly not the preferred method of access.