Instead of using our extra CPU power to parse with less efficient algorithms, I think we should use our extra CPU power to integrate parsing more deeply into our editors/IDEs. With a fast parsing algorithm, you could parse as a programmer types, unlike the current syntax highlighting editors which use only rough pattern matching instead of having a real parse tree.
Don't Eclipse/Visual Studio/Emacs Semantic/etc. already do this? The struct trick you mention would be new to me, but unless I'm missing something, seeing syntax errors the moment you type them and getting context-sensitive completion are features that have been available since before I started programming (in 2002).
Don't Eclipse/Visual Studio/Emacs Semantic/etc. already do this? The struct trick you mention would be new to me, but unless I'm missing something, seeing syntax errors the moment you type them and getting context-sensitive completion are features that have been available since before I started programming (in 2002).