401 lines
14 KiB
Markdown
401 lines
14 KiB
Markdown
# Claro v1.18.26
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<img src="assets/Claro_Logo.jpg" alt="Claro logo" width="160">
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Claro is a small, readable scripting language designed to help beginners — especially learners with learning disabilities — learn programming without being overwhelmed by punctuation-heavy syntax.
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Claro stays plain-text first: simple enough to start with `SET name "Jon"`, but able to grow into stronger typed scripts, objects, packages, networking, and tooling over the v1 line. Graphics/SDL work is experimental and not enabled in the stable executable.
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## Status
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**Current release:** Claro v1.18.26
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Validated in this package:
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```bash
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./claro --version
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# Claro v1.18.26
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./claro test
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# PASS: 0 failure(s)
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./claro validate
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# Validation passed. Claro v1.18.26 networking reliability is ready for use.
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python3 tools/validate_typecheck_diagnostics.py
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python3 tools/validate_version_convention.py
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python3 tools/validate_package_security.py
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python3 tools/validate_ci_workflow.py
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```
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## Beginner-first syntax
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Claro accepts both the sentence-like style and the shorter simple style:
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```claro
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SET name TO "Jon"
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SET name "Jon"
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SET city to "Edmonton"
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ASK "What is your name?" name
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SAY "Hello " + name
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IF name = "Jon"
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SAY "Nice name!"
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END
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```
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Older forms such as `ASK "Name?" AS name`, `ENDIF`, `DONE`, and `LEARNED` still work so older Claro examples do not break.
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## Simple functions
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```claro
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TEACH greet name
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SAY "Hello " + name
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END
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DO greet "Jon"
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```
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Older function syntax still works:
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```claro
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TEACH greet TAKES name
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SAY "Hello " + name
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LEARNED
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CALL greet WITH "Jon"
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```
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## Objects and classes
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Classes can have typed fields and simple methods.
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```claro
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CLASS Player
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HAS name TEXT
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HAS score NUMBER
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TEACH show
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SAY name
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SAY score
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END
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TEACH add points
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SET score score + points
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END
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END
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NEW Player player
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SET player.name "Jon"
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SET player.score 10
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DO player.show
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DO player.add 5
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SAY player.score
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```
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Object helper commands:
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```claro
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OBJECT CLASS player AS kind
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OBJECT FIELDS player AS fields
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```
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## Static type safety
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Beginners can still write the simplest form:
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```claro
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SET name "Jon"
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```
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When learners are ready, Claro can protect variables with plain-text types:
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```claro
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SET score NUMBER 10
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SET name TEXT "Jon"
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SET ready YESNO YES
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TYPE OF score AS kind
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SAY kind
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CHECK TYPE score IS NUMBER
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```
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Advanced container checks are available through `claro typecheck`:
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```claro
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SET names AS LIST OF TEXT TO LIST
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ADD "Ada" TO names
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SET scores AS MAP OF NUMBER TO MAP
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PUT scores KEY "math" VALUE 98
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```
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`claro typecheck` also has an early function-argument diagnostic foundation. A function can state a parameter expectation with `CHECK TYPE`, and calls with the wrong value type or a missing checked argument get a friendly error:
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```claro
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TEACH square amount
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CHECK TYPE amount IS NUMBER
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SAY amount
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END
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DO square "oops"
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```
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```text
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Type mismatch for function square: parameter amount needs NUMBER, but this argument looks like TEXT.
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Function square needs argument amount as NUMBER, but this call does not provide it.
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Function greet needs 1 argument, but this call gives 0. Add the missing argument.
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Function square only accepts 1 argument, but this call gives 2. Remove the extra argument.
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Function squre is not known yet. Check the function name or add TEACH squre before calling it.
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```
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The unknown-function diagnostic is validated for both modern `DO squre 4` and compatibility `CALL squre WITH 4` calls. Compatibility calls that leave `WITH` empty, such as `CALL greet WITH`, now count as zero arguments, so learners get the same missing-argument guidance as `DO greet` instead of the checker treating the blank as an argument.
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For functions with more than one checked parameter, Claro reports each mismatched argument with the parameter name:
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```claro
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TEACH label TAKES name, age
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CHECK TYPE name IS TEXT
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CHECK TYPE age IS NUMBER
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END
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CALL label WITH 7, "old"
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```
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The same narrow diagnostic foundation now covers simple object method calls when the object was created with `NEW` and the method body uses `CHECK TYPE` for a parameter. Correct calls such as `DO player.add 5` and compatibility calls such as `CALL player.add WITH 5` are covered by validation, and wrong-type calls get a focused learner-facing error. This also works when the checked method appears after another method in the same class, so normal multi-method class examples still get the same wrong-type and extra-argument guidance:
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```claro
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CLASS Player
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HAS score NUMBER
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TEACH add points
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CHECK TYPE points IS NUMBER
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SET score score + points
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END
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END
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NEW Player player
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DO player.add "five"
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CALL player.add WITH "five"
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```
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```text
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Type mismatch for method Player.add: parameter points needs NUMBER, but this argument looks like TEXT.
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Method Player.add needs argument points as NUMBER, but this call does not provide it.
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Method Player.rename needs 1 argument, but this call gives 0. Add the missing argument.
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Method Player.add only accepts 1 argument, but this call gives 2. Remove the extra argument.
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```
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If a learner calls a simple object method before creating the object with `NEW`, `claro typecheck` now points to the missing setup instead of letting the dotted call look like an ordinary unknown function. This covers both the modern `DO player.add 5` form and the older compatibility `CALL player.add WITH 5` form, including `CALL` mistakes where the method name itself is wrong:
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```text
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Object player is not known yet. Create it with NEW ClassName player before calling player.add.
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Object player is not known yet. Create it with NEW ClassName player before calling player.fly.
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```
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If the object exists but the class does not declare that method, Claro now names the class and suggests where to add the missing `TEACH` block. This is validated for both modern `DO player.fly 5` and compatibility `CALL player.fly WITH 5` calls:
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```text
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Object Player has no method fly. Check the method name or add TEACH fly inside CLASS Player.
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```
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For simple object fields created with `NEW Class name`, `claro typecheck` also catches direct wrong-type field assignments such as `SET player.score "ten"` when the class says `HAS score NUMBER`. This remains true if the `HAS` field appears after a simple method in the class, so learners get the field-type error instead of a misleading unknown-field hint:
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```text
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Type mismatch for field player.score: expected NUMBER, but this value looks like TEXT.
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```
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It also catches direct assignments to undeclared fields and suggests the matching `HAS` line:
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```text
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Object Player has no field level. Check the field name or add HAS level NUMBER to the class.
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```
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TEXT-valued and YESNO-valued field-name mistakes are validated too:
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```text
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Object Player has no field nickname. Check the field name or add HAS nickname TEXT to the class.
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Object Player has no field ready. Check the field name or add HAS ready YESNO to the class.
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```
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If Claro cannot infer the value type for an undeclared field yet, it avoids exposing the internal `ANY` placeholder and keeps the hint beginner-facing:
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```text
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Object Player has no field level. Check the field name or add the field to the class with the right type.
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```
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Direct object-field `CHECK TYPE` metadata mismatches are validated for NUMBER, TEXT, and YESNO fields too. For example, after `HAS ready YESNO` and `SET player.ready YES`, `CHECK TYPE player.ready IS TEXT` reports:
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```text
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Type check failed: expected TEXT, but player.ready looks like YESNO.
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```
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If `CHECK TYPE` names an undeclared field, Claro now gives the same class-and-field hint as direct field assignment. For example, `CHECK TYPE player.level IS NUMBER` after `NEW Player player` reports:
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```text
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Object Player has no field level. Check the field name or add HAS level NUMBER to the class.
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```
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TEXT expectations are validated with the same pattern, for example `CHECK TYPE player.nickname IS TEXT` reports:
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```text
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Object Player has no field nickname. Check the field name or add HAS nickname TEXT to the class.
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```
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YESNO expectations are validated too; `CHECK TYPE player.enabled IS YESNO` reports:
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```text
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Object Player has no field enabled. Check the field name or add HAS enabled YESNO to the class.
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```
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If a learner checks a field before creating the object with `NEW`, `claro typecheck` points to the missing object setup:
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```text
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Object player is not known yet. Create it with NEW ClassName player before checking player.score.
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```
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The same missing-object guidance is now validated for direct field assignment before `NEW`:
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```text
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Object player is not known yet. Create it with NEW ClassName player before setting player.score.
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```
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## Project and package workflow
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v1.18.26 hardens Claro's project/package workflow.
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Create a starter project:
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```bash
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claro new MyProject
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cd MyProject
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claro run
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```
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Manage packages:
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```bash
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claro package init
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claro package add text
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claro package list
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claro package remove text
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claro package doctor
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claro package lock
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```
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Claro now creates and maintains:
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```text
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claro.project
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claro.lock
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packages/
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```
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`claro package doctor` also checks that every listed package has a manifest whose
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`name:` matches the package name in `claro.project`; a mismatch is reported as
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`BAD package manifest name` instead of being treated as a healthy package.
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It also compares the complete `checksum:` field, so extra or trailing checksum
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text is rejected as `BAD package checksum`.
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Starter projects created with `claro new MyProject` use the same `manifest-version: 1` and `lock-version: 1` headers as `claro package init`, so the first project files match the package maintenance tools.
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Project names and package names are checked so unsafe names such as `../bad` are rejected before Claro creates folders. Names must also be 64 characters or fewer, which keeps generated project and package paths predictable. If an unsafe package name is already present in `claro.project`, `claro package doctor`, `claro package lock`, `claro package list`, `claro package init`, `claro package add`, and lockfile refreshes during `claro package remove` flag it instead of treating it as safe lockfile data. `claro package remove` can also remove the exact unsafe entry, so a learner can repair a bad project file without Claro using that unsafe name as a folder path. `claro package doctor` also verifies listed package lockfile checksums, reports stale lock entries, and rejects lockfile package entries that are not listed in `claro.project`.
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## Standard-library path and collection helpers
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Claro includes tested, namespaced helpers for everyday programs:
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```claro
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IMPORT "lib/path.claro" AS path
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IMPORT "lib/collections.claro" AS collections
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CALL path.join WITH "notes", "today.txt"
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SAY RESULT
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SET names AS LIST OF TEXT TO LIST
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ADD "Ada" TO names
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ADD "Grace" TO names
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CALL collections.join WITH names, " and "
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SAY RESULT
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```
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The `path` module includes `join`, `basename`, `dirname`, `ext`, `stem`, and `absolute`. The `collections` module includes list length/search/join/reverse helpers and map key/value/default-access helpers. See `docs/STDLIB.md` for the complete, current API.
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## Networking
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v1.18.26 adds safer beginner networking commands with offline `claro://` test URLs.
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```claro
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HTTP CHECK "claro://hello" AS safe
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SAY safe
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HTTP GET "claro://hello" AS page STATUS status
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SAY page
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SAY status
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HTTP SAVE "claro://json" TO "network_demo.json" AS saveStatus
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SAY saveStatus
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```
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The latest HTTP status is also stored in `LASTHTTP`. Real `http://` and `https://` requests use `curl` when available, while `claro://` works offline for lessons and tests.
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## Useful commands
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```bash
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claro help
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claro --version
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claro test
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claro validate
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claro doctor
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claro examples
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claro check examples/quiz.claro
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claro typecheck examples/type_hardening.claro
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claro fmt examples/quiz.claro
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claro repl
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claro new MyProject
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claro run
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claro package init
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claro package add text
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claro package list
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claro package doctor
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claro ide
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```
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## Good first scripts
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```bash
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./claro lessons/01_hello.claro
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./claro examples/quiz.claro
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./claro examples/simple_functions.claro
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./claro examples/objects_classes.claro
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./claro examples/text_polish.claro
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./claro examples/networking.claro
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```
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## Documentation map
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If you are new to Claro, start here:
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1. `docs/QUICK_START.md`
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2. `docs/FIRST_HOUR.md`
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3. `lessons/README.md`
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4. `docs/CLI.md`
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5. `docs/CURRENT_STATUS.md`
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Feature references by current status:
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- **Ready for beginner lessons:** language reference (`docs/SPEC.md`), friendly errors/checking (`docs/ERRORS.md`, `docs/LINTER.md`, `docs/TESTING.md`), formatter (`docs/FORMATTER.md`), and simple functions (`docs/SIMPLE_FUNCTIONS.md`).
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- **Foundation present, still being polished:** static typing (`docs/ADVANCED_STATIC_TYPING.md`), objects/classes (`docs/V1_15_OBJECTS_CLASSES.md`), local projects/packages (`docs/V1_16_PACKAGES_PROJECTS.md`), HTTP client networking (`docs/V1_17_NETWORKING.md`), cooperative tasks (`docs/CONCURRENCY.md`), and IDE metadata/helper support (`docs/IDE.md`).
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- **Planned or experimental, not stable beginner features yet:** remote package registry (`docs/PACKAGE_REGISTRY.md`), web server API (`docs/WEB_SERVER_PLAN.md`), full editor extension/LSP (`docs/EDITOR_EXTENSION_PLAN.md`), and real SDL graphics (`docs/GRAPHICS.md`, `docs/SDL12.md`).
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- **Roadmaps:** `docs/ROADMAP.md` for the current v1 direction and `docs/COMPLETE_PLATFORM_ROADMAP.md` for the larger platform goal.
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Historical release notes and validation logs are kept in files such as `docs/RC*_NOTES.md`, `docs/RC*_VALIDATION.md`, and older `docs/V1_*_VALIDATION.md`. They are useful for project history, but they are not the beginner starting path.
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## Release direction
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Claro should remain in the `v1.xx.yy` line for normal development. A future Claro v2 should mean a full rewrite years later, not an ordinary feature update.
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