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> Forth compilers can be bootstrapped from not-very-much assembler Do you have any resources handy on how one could do that from scratch?

by lhorie 6y ago

naters 6y ago
Jonesforth [1] is a classic example of this, and a really good example of “literate” code. [1] https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesforth.S https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesfort...
benhoyt 6y ago
A good learning resource is Jonesforth (something of a classic), on GitHub here: https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesforth.S https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesfort... I wrote several Forth compilers when learning to code as a teenager, one using the A86 assembler, and two fully bootstrapped-from-assembler ones for 8086 and 386. The 8086 source code is here (I didn't write the assembler myself): https://github.com/benhoyt/third https://github.com/benhoyt/third (KERNEL.F has the assembler parts)
- ampdepolymerase 6y ago
  There is also https://github.com/kragen/stoneknifeforth https://github.com/kragen/stoneknifeforth
  - transfire 6y ago
    Nice find. Thanks.
tailrecursion 6y ago
You requested from scratch, but also look into "metacompilation", which was typically how it was done.
dreamcompiler 6y ago
I did this for the TMS34010 graphics processor many years ago but my notes are long gone. I was inspired by Mach 2 Forth, an amazing compiler for the early Mac. My compiler had local variables and tail call detection to take advantage of a special "one-deep" stack register on the chip. The key point is that Forth can easily incorporate an RPN assembler which you can write in Forth, and with which you can then build a better Forth. I'm not sure if I even started with the official TI assembler for the chip; I probably first wrote a cross assembler in Mach 2 by transcribing the ISA manual and bootstrapped from that.

> Forth compilers can be bootstrapped from not-very-much assembler Do you have any resources handy on how one could do that from scratch?

by lhorie 6y ago

> Forth compilers can be bootstrapped from not-very-much assembler Do you have any resources handy on how one could do that from scratch?

naters 6y ago

Jonesforth [1] is a classic example of this, and a really good example of “literate” code. [1] https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesforth.S https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesfort...

benhoyt 6y ago

A good learning resource is Jonesforth (something of a classic), on GitHub here: https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesforth.S https://github.com/nornagon/jonesforth/blob/master/jonesfort... I wrote several Forth compilers when learning to code as a teenager, one using the A86 assembler, and two fully bootstrapped-from-assembler ones for 8086 and 386. The 8086 source code is here (I didn't write the assembler myself): https://github.com/benhoyt/third https://github.com/benhoyt/third (KERNEL.F has the assembler parts)

ampdepolymerase 6y ago
There is also https://github.com/kragen/stoneknifeforth https://github.com/kragen/stoneknifeforth
- transfire 6y ago
  Nice find. Thanks.

tailrecursion 6y ago

You requested from scratch, but also look into "metacompilation", which was typically how it was done.

dreamcompiler 6y ago

I did this for the TMS34010 graphics processor many years ago but my notes are long gone. I was inspired by Mach 2 Forth, an amazing compiler for the early Mac. My compiler had local variables and tail call detection to take advantage of a special "one-deep" stack register on the chip. The key point is that Forth can easily incorporate an RPN assembler which you can write in Forth, and with which you can then build a better Forth. I'm not sure if I even started with the official TI assembler for the chip; I probably first wrote a cross assembler in Mach 2 by transcribing the ISA manual and bootstrapped from that.