[LINK] Tools for Compiling to JavaScript

[Roger Clarke]

At 20:17 +1000 14/4/15, Stephen Loosley wrote:
>Cool Tools for Compiling to JavaScript
>By Peter Wayner, 14th April 2015.  http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/572526/cool-tools-compiling-javascript/

Once upon a time, computing terms had clear meanings.

Compile meant to convert source-code into executable code, i.e. the machine-language of a given computer.

Although I must admit that there were some that converted source-code into the assembler-language used for a given computer, which necessitated a second run, of the assembler to convert the result into an executable.

(Let's leave aside the frequently misunderstood notion of 'object-code').

The idea of converting a real language into the semi-accidental monstrosity that is JavaScript (ECMAScript anyone?) is a bit of a jolt.  

Late-generation Fortran into Basic??  Algol into C?  Algol into C++?  Well, I guess the last of those may have some kind of logic to it.

More to the point, X-to-JS is not 'compiling' in the original sense. 

I tried to make sense of some aspects of the topic in this one:
http://www.rogerclarke.com/SOS/SwareGenns.html

Written "a quarter-century ago".  Ouch.

-- 
Roger Clarke                                 http://www.rogerclarke.com/
			             
Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd      78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA
Tel: +61 2 6288 6916                        http://about.me/roger.clarke
mailto:Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au                http://www.xamax.com.au/ 

Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law            University of N.S.W.
Visiting Professor in Computer Science    Australian National University