FAQ

[arakov]

Q: Why it was developed?
A: I did it out of curiosity. I was interested in learning more about dynamic object-oriented languages.

Q: Goal
A: I'm interested in dynamic code generation and work in this direction.

Q: the reliability
A: the current version is quite stable. The language support exception handling (including critical ones).

Q: writability and readiability
A: The current syntax is similar to C-style grammar (though it is not 100% compatible). So it has the same advantages / disadvantages. In general ELENA uses LL(1) grammar. The language syntax structures can be extended using templates. E.g if, while, for - are user-defined code template patterns. The language does not have built-in keywords. They are user-defined as well. (As a result it could be quite easily localized). The language uses UTF-8 source files by default.

Q: abstract classes
A: yes, using abstract attribute

Q: interfaces
A: using interface attribute

Q: GC
A: yes, it uses generational GC (two generations)

Q: Does the language support Duck typing?
A: Yes, see https://www.reddit.com/r/elena_lang/comments/caxqms/duck_typing_in_elena_programming_language/

Q: Does the language support Operators overloading?
A: Yes, an operator is an alias to the message, see - https://www.reddit.com/r/elena_lang/comments/cay2dn/operator_overloading_in_elena_programming_language/

Q: What about nested functions?
A: Yes, ELENA supports closures. See for example - http://rosettacode.org/wiki/Nested_function#Elena or http://rosettacode.org/wiki/Anonymous_recursion#Elena

Q: Polimorphism?
A: Yes, ELENA is a pure polymorphic object oriented language. All the methods (except sealed ones) are virtual.