Documentation

Welcome to the Quartz programming language documentation. Quartz is a minimalist language designed for developers who value simplicity, transparency, and control.

📚 New to Quartz? Start with the Getting Started Guide to get up and running in minutes.

Documentation Overview

Quick Example

Here's a taste of what Quartz code looks like:

import system.io as io;
import system.math as math;
import system.collection as c;

// Define a class
class Calculator {
    string name;

    fn add(a: int, b: int) -> int {
        return a + b;
    }

    fn power(base: double, exp: double) -> double {
        return math.pow(base, exp);
    }
}

// Create and use an instance
let calc = new Calculator();
calc.name = "MyCalc";

io.out.println("Calculator:", calc.name);
io.out.println("5 + 3 =", calc.add(5, 3));
io.out.println("2^8 =", calc.power(2.0, 8.0));

// Work with collections
let numbers = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5];
let doubled = c.map(numbers, (x) => x * 2);
io.out.println("Doubled:", doubled);

Key Features

• Dual Execution: Interpret directly or compile to bytecode
• Familiar Syntax: C-like curly brace syntax that's easy to learn
• Modern OOP: Classes, methods, inheritance, and more
• First-Class Functions: Lambdas, closures, higher-order functions
• Exception Handling: Try-catch-finally with typed exceptions
• Modular Design: Namespace-based imports with aliases
• Extensible: Write native C++ extensions easily

Philosophy

Quartz follows the principle of minimal magic. Like Arch Linux, we believe in:

• Simplicity: No hidden behavior or implicit conversions
• Transparency: Understand exactly what your code does
• User Control: You decide what's in your runtime
• Minimalism: Small core, composable pieces

Read more about our design philosophy.

Getting Help

• GitHub Issues - Report bugs and request features
• GitHub Discussions - Ask questions and share ideas
• Contributing Guide - Help improve Quartz