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IRB was written at 20 years ago and contains Ruby code parser by pure Ruby. The parser is contributing greatly to some Ruby tools over many years but the maintenance cost for new Ruby syntax continues to increase. IRB must parse Ruby code certainly for when should evaluate the code. I provide a solution for it. Ruby 1.9 or later has two big new features for this problem, `Ripper` and `RubyVM::InstructionSequence.compile`. The two features provide whether code piece continues by tokens information and syntax check. After IRB implementation was modernized, I added some new features to IRB. IRB imports RDoc features as a library, such as show documentation with auto-complete, auto-complete for meta-programmed namespaces. RubyKaigi 2018 https://rubykaigi.org/2018/presentations/aycabta
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In this presentation at RubyKaigi 2018, Sakura Itoyanagi discusses the modernization of the Interactive Ruby Shell (IRB) to improve its implementation and features, emphasizing the need to adapt to the evolving syntax of Ruby.\n\n### Main Topic\nThe main focus of the talk is on how to update IRB, which has been in use for over 20 years, to better handle Ruby's increasingly complex syntax and to include new features that improve user experience.\n\n### Key Points\n- **IRB's Legacy and Challenges**: IRB, written in pure Ruby two decades ago, has caused a rise in maintenance costs as new Ruby syntax emerged.\n- **New Ruby Features**: The introduction of `Ripper` and `RubyVM::InstructionSequence.compile` in Ruby 1.9 brought powerful tools for parsing and evaluating Ruby code, paving the way for IRB's modernization.\n- **Recent Patches**: Sakura highlights two patches she contributed: one for improved integration with Ripper and another for documentation display during code compilation.\n- **General Syntax Complexity**: Despite Ruby’s user-friendly reputation, its syntax has complexities that can overwhelm new users. Sakura addressed this by fixing bugs in the existing IRB implementation and making it more manageable.\n- **Enhanced Syntax Error Handling**: Improvements include better handling of syntax errors, providing prompts for incomplete or nested structures, and improving user feedback during coding sessions.\n- **Documentation Improvements**: An emphasis on displaying documentation more intuitively for users, ensuring it's readily accessible. Suggestions were made to further enhance documentation design within Ruby, aiming to remove the no-document option in future releases.\n\n### Important Examples and Illustrations\n- The presentation includes personal anecdotes from Sakura's experiences outside of the coding world, such as her fossil digging trip, to illustrate her connection to the community and the vibrant, creative aspects that mirror programming endeavors.\n- Specific coding features were discussed, like tracking nesting levels in Ruby, which helps feedback to users about their code structure.\n\n### Conclusions and Takeaways\n- The evolution of Ruby, its syntax intricacies, and the community's feedback are critical for enhancing IRB and the Ruby experience overall.\n- Continuous advocacy for improvement in tools like IRB will support the Ruby community and enhance usability for current and future developers.\n\nSakura concludes by inviting questions and appreciating the community's support in advancing the capabilities of Ruby tools.
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