ixx 0.3.3

IXX — executable checklist-style code

IXX

IXX is executable checklist-style code. It uses plain English comparisons and visible dash blocks instead of braces, indentation, and symbolic clutter.

age = 19

if age less than 18
- say "Not adult"
else
- say "Adult"

---

Quick start

pip install lark
pip install -e .

Then ixx is a command in your terminal.

---

Hello World

say "Hello World"

ixx hello.ixx

---

Variables and string interpolation

name = "Ixxy"
say "Hello, {name}"

---

Conditions

age = 19

if age less than 18
- say "Not adult"
else
- say "Adult"

The - at the start of a line means it belongs to the block directly above. No indentation rules. No invisible whitespace.

---

Lists and contains

items = "apple", "banana", "grape"

if items contains "banana"
- say "Found it"
else
- say "No banana"

---

Loops

count = 3

loop count more than 0
- say "Countdown: {count}"
- count = count - 1

say "Done"

---

All comparisons

if x is 10           # equal
if x is not 10       # not equal
if x less than 10    # strictly less
if x more than 10    # strictly greater
if x at least 10     # greater or equal
if x at most 10      # less or equal
if list contains x   # membership
if text contains x   # substring check

---

Logic

if ready and logged_in
- say "Go"

if tired or bored
- say "Take a break"

if not active
- say "Inactive"

---

Booleans

active = YES
done = NO

---

Nested blocks

if user is "Ixxy"
- say "Hello Ixxy"
- if age at least 18
-- say "Adult account"
- else
-- say "Limited account"

---

CLI

Command	What it does
ixx file.ixx	run a script
ixx run file.ixx	run a script (explicit)
ixx check file.ixx	check syntax without running
ixx version	print the IXX version
ixx help	show help and quick-reference
ixx	open the interactive shell
ixx shell	open the interactive shell
ixx do "ip wifi"	run one shell command and exit

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IXX Shell

Open the shell with ixx, then use everyday commands without memorising native syntax.

ixx> ip
Adapter      IPv4
-----------  ---------------
Wi-Fi        192.168.1.42

ixx> ip wifi
Wi-Fi: 192.168.1.42

ixx> cpu
  CPU:     AMD Ryzen 9 5950X
  Cores:   16
  Threads: 32
  Usage:   12%

ixx> cpu core-count
  AMD Ryzen 9 5950X
  Cores:   16
  Threads: 32

ixx> ram
  RAM
  Total: 64.0 GB
  Used:  21.0 GB
  Free:  43.0 GB

ixx> disk
Drive  Label   Total    Free
-----  ------  -------  -------
C:     System  2.0 TB   870 GB

ixx> disk space
ixx> disk partitions
ixx> folder size downloads
  downloads: 14.2 GB

ixx> open desktop
  Opened: C:\Users\you\Desktop

ixx> list downloads

ixx> gpu
  GPU:     NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 SUPER
  VRAM:    12.0 GB
  Driver:  32.0.15.8157

ixx> gpu vram
ixx> cpu temperature
ixx> cpu speed
ixx> cpu info
ixx> ram free
ixx> ram speed
ixx> wifi
  Network:  MyNetwork
  Signal:   90%
  IP:       192.168.1.42

ixx> ip public
  Public IP:  203.0.113.5
  (via external lookup: api.ipify.org)

ixx> ports
ixx> processes
ixx> find file "*.pdf" in downloads

Single-command mode (useful for scripts and automation):

ixx do "ip"
ixx do "cpu core-count"
ixx do "gpu"
ixx do "folder size downloads"
ixx do "find file *.pdf in downloads"

Notes:

• v0.3.0 is Windows-first for real system commands.
• Cross-platform adapters (Linux, macOS) are planned for a future release.
• Destructive commands (delete, kill process, copy, move) are still stubbed for safety.
• The Python implementation is prototype v0 — not the final runtime.

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File extension

IXX source files use the .ixx extension.

hello.ixx
system-info.ixx
deploy-checklist.ixx

Note: .ixx is also used by C++20 module interface files. Some editors may misdetect .ixx as C++. Install the editor support below to override this association.

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Editor support

IXX ships with syntax highlighting for VS Code and Notepad++, plus a Windows file icon.

VS Code

The editor/vscode/ folder contains a VS Code language extension that:

• Registers .ixx as IXX (overriding C++ detection)
• Highlights comments, strings, keywords, booleans, numbers, and operators
• Highlights string interpolation ({name} inside double-quoted strings)
• Configures # as the line comment character

See editor/vscode/README.md for installation instructions.

Notepad++

The editor/notepad-plus-plus/ folder contains a User Defined Language (UDL) XML for Notepad++ that highlights .ixx files with the same colour scheme.

See editor/notepad-plus-plus/README.md for step-by-step installation instructions.

Windows file icon

The IXX icon asset lives in assets/:

assets/
  ixx-icon-source.png       source image (673×673)
  generate_icons.py         generates all sizes automatically
  generated/
    ixx-icon-16.png
    ixx-icon-24.png
    ixx-icon-32.png
    ixx-icon-48.png
    ixx-icon-64.png
    ixx-icon-128.png
    ixx-icon-256.png
    ixx-icon.ico             multi-size Windows icon

To generate the icons (requires Pillow):

pip install Pillow
python assets/generate_icons.py

To associate .ixx files with the IXX icon on Windows, see editor/windows/file-association.md.

SVG note: SVG output is intentionally skipped — converting a raster PNG to SVG would embed the bitmap data rather than produce a true vector image. PNG and ICO are the canonical IXX icon formats.

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Current limitations

• Requires Python 3.11+ and the lark library.
• No functions, file I/O, or imports yet.
• Variable names must be single words (no spaces).
• Reserved words cannot be used as variable names: if, else, loop, say, and, or, not, is, less, more, than, at, least, most, contains, YES, NO.
• Shell system commands are Windows-first in v0.3.0; Linux/macOS adapters are planned.
• Destructive commands (delete, kill process, copy, move) exist in the guidance tree but do not execute yet.

---

This is prototype v0

The current implementation uses Python and the Lark parser library. This is a proof of concept to validate the grammar and interpreter design.

Python is the implementation language for this phase only. It is not the long-term identity of IXX.

The long-term goal is a standalone IXX binary that requires nothing else to be installed — likely written in Go, Rust, or a similar compiled language. See spec/roadmap.md for the full plan.

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Tests

The prototype ships with a full automated test suite.

python -m unittest discover -s tests -p "test*.py"

282 tests passing across: language basics, strings, numbers, booleans, conditions, dash blocks, loops, lists, comparisons, contains, logic, error handling, CLI commands, shell guidance, command handlers, path aliases, format helpers, banner, and new system commands.

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Project layout

ixx/            prototype interpreter (Python)
examples/       example .ixx scripts
spec/           language spec, shell design, roadmap
docs/           getting started guide
tests/          automated tests
assets/         icon source and generate_icons.py script
  generated/    generated PNG sizes and ixx-icon.ico
editor/         syntax highlighting and file association
  vscode/       VS Code language extension
  notepad-plus-plus/  Notepad++ User Defined Language
  windows/      Windows file association documentation
CHANGELOG.md    version history

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More

• spec/language.md — full language reference
• spec/shell.md — planned interactive shell design
• spec/roadmap.md — where IXX is going
• docs/getting-started.md — step by step setup
• editor/vscode/README.md — VS Code extension
• editor/notepad-plus-plus/README.md — Notepad++ UDL
• editor/windows/file-association.md — Windows file icon and association