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Quick Start

Get started with SLOP in 5 minutes!

Your First SLOP Script​

Create a file called hello.slop:

# A simple greeting
name = "World"
greeting = "Hello, " + name + "!"

emit(greeting)

Run it:

slop run hello.slop

Output:

Hello, World!

Working with Variables​

SLOP supports common data types:

# Numbers
age = 25
price = 99.99

# Strings
name = "Alice"
message = 'Single quotes work too'

# Booleans
is_active = true
is_valid = false

# None (null value)
result = none

# Lists
fruits = ["apple", "banana", "orange"]

# Maps (dictionaries) — must stay on one line
person = {"name": "Bob", "age": 30, "city": "NYC"}

Control Flow​

If Statements​

age = 20

if age >= 18:
    emit("You can vote! ✅")
else:
    emit("Too young to vote ❌")

For Loops​

# Iterate over a list
fruits = ["🍎", "🍌", "🍊"]

for fruit in fruits:
    emit(fruit)

# Iterate with index
for i, fruit in fruits:
    emit(str(i) + ": " + fruit)

# Range
for i in range(5):
    emit("Count: " + str(i))

Functions​

Define reusable logic:

def greet(name):
    return "Hello, " + name + "! 👋"

def add(a, b):
    return a + b

# Use functions
message = greet("Alice")
sum = add(10, 20)

emit(message)
emit("Sum: " + str(sum))

Streaming with emit​

The emit statement sends output in real-time:

emit("Processing...")
emit("Step 1 complete ✓")
emit("Step 2 complete ✓")
emit("Done! 🎉")

This is perfect for streaming AI responses!

Built-in Functions​

SLOP comes with many useful built-ins:

# String functions
upper_text = upper("hello")  # "HELLO"
lower_text = lower("WORLD")  # "world"
parts = split("a,b,c", ",")  # ["a", "b", "c"]

# Math functions
absolute = abs(-42)  # 42
maximum = max([1, 5, 3])  # 5
total = sum([1, 2, 3])  # 6

# List functions
first_item = first([1, 2, 3])  # 1
last_item = last([1, 2, 3])  # 3
length = len([1, 2, 3])  # 3

See the Built-in Functions reference for more!

Error Handling​

Handle errors gracefully:

try:
    result = risky_operation()
    emit("Success: " + str(result))
catch error:
    emit("Error occurred: " + error)

Next Steps​

Now that you know the basics:

Happy coding! 🎉