2024-09-03
    data array works. next: push/pop

2024-09-05
    push and pop work
    getting word tokens works

2024-09-06
    dictionary name table works

Problem: I can easily store a token
sequence in the directionary. But
to make a return stack function
correctly, I would need to store
both the name *and* position of the
last call site?

Solution?: Instead of storing the
token sequences in separate table
entries, what if I store all source
in the same string and just store
pointers to it?

And if the return stack is empty,
we're reading from stdin.


2024-09-10

Holy cow, this works:

    : 2x DUP + ; 5 2x . CR
    : 4x 2x 2x ; 5 4x . CR

Words calling words. So the return stack works.
Whew. Definitely had some tough bugs there for
a bit, but nothing some "print debugging" can't
fix.

2024-09-11

Well, now that my initial goal is accomplished,
I feel a bit aimless.

I could just start implementing various words,
but that doesn't exactly fill me with joy.

So I've decided to go get a new goal.
I've always liked the 99 Bottles of Beer exercise
where you print out the lyrics to the song
in your favorite programming language.

I found a good one and threw it into a 99.forth
file.

Is it weird that it's kind of a relief to see
errors so I know what to do next? No, it is not
weird.

    $ snobol forth.sno <99.forth
    ERROR: '(' not in dictionary.
    ERROR: 'Bottles' not in dictionary.
    ERROR: 'of' not in dictionary.
    ERROR: 'Beer' not in dictionary.
    ...

Looks like I need to implement "( ... )" comments
first.

This, of course, will cause a whole cascade of
other words needing to be defined. But that's the
whole idea.

It looks like the total list of words to implement
the traditional bootstrapped functionality needed
for 99 Bottles is something like:

    ' ( +LOOP , - -1 .  ." 0BRANCH 1- = ?DUP @ BEGIN
    DO ELSE HERE I IF KEY SWAP THEN UNTIL [CHAR]

(To get this list, I did a little manual recursive
walk through JonesFORTH to get the definitions of
the words used in 99 Bottles.)


    ' ( +LOOP , - -1 .  ." 0BRANCH 1- = ?DUP @ BEGIN
    DO ELSE HERE I IF KEY SWAP THEN UNTIL [CHAR]


...  Many days later ...

Went a totally different direction. Not slavishly
following traditional implementation of the Forth
words. Nope, just making straightforward Snobol
functions for what's needed for 99 Bottles.

... Aaaaand, DONE ...

I guess I wasn't very good about keeping up the log
but I will have some conclusions about how this
went that I'll be writing somewhere.