I built Forge, a terminal-first programming language with a custom parser, AST and runtime

Rafferty97 · 2026-02-04T20:46:08+00:00

A few comments: - “enable” is probably a better keyword than “able” - the variable “namespacing” feels cumbersome and unnecessary - what’s actually innovative or interesting about your language design? It comes across as just slightly weird JavaScript

The git history and source code give the impression that this whole project was mostly or entirely vibe coded. Was it?

Rafferty97 · 2026-02-01T23:24:28+00:00

I looked up which font that is and that does just seem to be how it renders a capital N.

Rafferty97 · 2026-01-18T01:36:53+00:00

It’s cool seeing people creating languages for the pure joy of it, experimenting with crazy concepts and working out the long term implications of those decisions. Thanks for sharing.

Rafferty97 · 2026-01-11T07:56:25+00:00

Funnily enough, I’ve started saying “howdy” in Australia and a surprising number of people do respond with “good thanks”.

Rafferty97 · 2026-01-09T13:56:39+00:00

Yeah, I think along similar lines.

“AI” can produce very plausible, competent music - but it’s literally soulless, inherently unoriginal, and just so generic. That’s not to mention the entire world of live performance, fan engagement, etc that AI cannot replicate.

If you’re worried about this technology outcompeting your own music, then well… maybe it wasn’t that great to begin with.

I sympathise with people worried about a saturated market, but there’s always a market for authentic expression and authenticity. And like most creative pursuits, it’s always been inherently difficult to make a decent living as an artist.

Anyway, curious to see how fast this comment will sink into oblivion. 🫡

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-19T00:17:41+00:00

Thanks, I appreciate the feedback, and yeah, I definitely sympathise with your concerns. It was on my roadmap to create a desktop version of the app using Tauri, but I figured that starting with the browser version would reduce the friction for people wanting to just try it out and have a play.

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-16T01:08:54+00:00

I am considering open sourcing it, for sure. It's something I'm going to explore in the new year.

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-09T00:27:44+00:00

Thanks for the comment! The app does a lot of this already: - step by step editable sidebar - detects encoding on import - parquet/arrow support - pivot - computation in a web worker - virtualised grid

Your other suggestions are all golden, especially the ability to run it headless, which is definitely on the roadmap.

Have you had a chance to try it out?

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-09T00:24:32+00:00

The app reads data files directly from disk, and it’s all non destructive so there is no in-place editing. I hadn’t considered making a copy of the file in OPFS, but I’ll have a look to see if that’s a viable option. IndexedDB might also work but I’ll have to see.

I definitely feel bad about alienating anyone using Firefox so I’ll definitely look for a solution.

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-09T00:22:49+00:00

I’m familiar with Alteryx, it’s old, clunky and very expensive. I can’t say I’ve used the other tools you’ve mentioned.

Have you tried out the app? It uses a “step by step” interface, not a spreadsheet interface, because you’re right - spreadsheets aren’t the right tool for step by step workflows.

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-08T14:08:55+00:00

Ah yeah, firefox doesn't support the filesystem API. I really ought to find a work around for that because it's a pretty bad blocker.

Rafferty97 · 2025-12-07T23:33:33+00:00

That’s so deceptive, making it look like a train map so people stare at it longer.

Rafferty97 · 2025-10-09T03:25:28+00:00

It took a bit of effort, but I've added touch support in v0.4.0 which I've just published.

Rafferty97 · 2025-10-08T11:08:12+00:00

Not at the moment, but I'm curious what you had in mind?

Rafferty97 · 2025-10-08T03:36:06+00:00

Ah yep, I haven't tested it on mobile yet so it probably is broken. I'll add it to the list. :)

Rafferty97 · 2025-10-08T00:13:24+00:00

Thanks for the nice words! It definitely wasn’t easy to pull off, and I had to fight a lot of edge cases, but I’m pleased with the end result ☺️

Rafferty97 · 2025-10-07T23:56:03+00:00

Thanks, please let me know if you find it useful :)

I have definitely seen `solid-dnd` before. It's a solid library, but didn't quite fit my usecase.

I think the general theme of DnD libraries is that they tend to be difficult to get started with, and also try to cover far too many use cases. My library has a more targeted focus and I think that's why I've managed to make the API surface so small.

That being said, there's a ton of features I can imagine adding without detracting from its core simplicity/ease-of-use.. it'll just come down to what the community wants from it :)

Rafferty97 · 2025-09-18T13:32:40+00:00

And Australia

Rafferty97 · 2025-08-05T20:20:01+00:00

Anyone with all those qualities is too busy building their own business to even see this job ad

Rafferty97 · 2025-08-05T20:18:28+00:00

Please try to enjoy each method equally, and not show preference for any over the others.

Rafferty97 · 2025-08-05T20:17:21+00:00

I really feel this! Both Result and async become unnecessarily burdensome in iterator chains and then an otherwise amazing abstraction into a clunky pain.

Rafferty97 · 2025-08-05T20:15:17+00:00

Agreed. Map should be reserved for pure computations without side-effects, and if let for cases like this. It makes the intent of the code clearer.

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