# Nova

Nova

**N**ested **O**rdered **V**ersatile **A**rchitecture — a programmable markup language.

npm version MIT license CI status Node version

--- Nova is not a simple mashup of HTML, YAML, and TeX. It abstracts their strengths into a **unified node model** — everything is a **functional Block** with attributes and children. **What problem does Nova solve?** Traditional markup languages force you to pick a single paradigm: HTML for structure, YAML for data, TeX for typesetting, Markdown for simplicity. Nova unifies them all into one consistent syntax — write documents, schemas, data models, math, and code with the same grammar. Use it for technical writing, API documentation, code generation, data reports, and literate programming. --- ## Installation ### npm (recommended) ```bash npm install -g @nova-lang/cli ``` ### From source ```bash git clone https://github.com/nova-markup-lang/cli.git cd cli npm install npm link ``` --- ## Quick Start Create a file `hello.nv`: ```nova @meta { title: "Hello Nova" } @page { @h1 "Welcome to Nova" @p "This is a @em{programmable} markup language." @p "Inline math: $E = mc^2$" } ``` Render to HTML: ```bash nova build hello.nv -o hello.html ``` Open `hello.html` in your browser. --- ## CLI Usage ```bash nova # Render .nv file to HTML (stdout) nova build # Render to .html file nova build -o out # Specify output path nova lex # Show token stream (debug) nova ast # Show AST structure (debug) nova watch # Watch file and auto-rebuild nova init [dir] # Scaffold new Nova project nova help # Show full usage nova -i # Read from stdin ``` ### Options | Flag | Description | |--------------------|------------------------------------| | `-i, --input ` | Input `.nv` file | | `-o, --output ` | Output file path (build) | | `-p, --pretty` | Pretty-print HTML | | `--css ` | Inject custom CSS file | | `--template ` | Use custom HTML template | | `--latex` | Render to LaTeX instead of HTML | | `-h, --help` | Show help | | `-v, --version` | Show version | --- ## Syntax Overview ### Blocks Everything is a block: `@BlockName(attrs) { children }`. ```nova @section(id: "intro") { @p "This is a paragraph." @ul { - Item one - Item two } } ``` - No children → omit braces: `@image(src: "photo.png")` - Anonymous block → unnamed container like `
` - Attributes in `()`, comma-separated, `:` or `=` for key-value pairs - Children indented 2 spaces ### Inline Elements ```nova Text with @em{emphasis}, @strong{bold}, a @a(href: "https://nova-lang.org"){link} and @code{print(x)}. ``` ### Interpolations ```nova @p "Hello, #{name}! You have #{count} messages." ``` ### Conditionals ```nova @if(condition) { ... } @else @if(other) { ... } @else { ... } ``` ### Loops ```nova @for(item in list) { - #{item} } @for(i in 5) { @p "Iteration #{i}" } ``` ### Macros ```nova @def greet(name) { @p "Hello, #{name}!" } @def button(label: String = "Click", @content) { @div(style: "border:1px solid #ccc; padding:8px") { @strong "#{label}" @content } } @greet("World") @button(label: "Submit") { @p "Click me" } ``` ### Schemas & Services ```nova @schema(Person) { id: Int32 @1 name: String @2 = "" email: String? @3 tags: List @4 } @service(UserAPI) { getUser(id: Int64) -> Person listUsers() -> List } ``` ### Tables ```nova @table(caption: "Languages") { @header { Name, Type, Paradigm } @row { Nova, Markup, Multi-paradigm } @row { HTML, Markup, Declarative } } ``` Or CSV-style arrays: ```nova @table { [["Name", "Age"], ["Alice", 30], ["Bob", 25]] } ``` ### Lists ```nova @ul { - Apple - Banana } @ol { + First + Second } ``` ### Math ```nova Inline: $E = mc^2$ Display: $$ \sum_{i=1}^n i = \frac{n(n+1)}{2} $$ Block: @equation { x = \frac{-b \pm \sqrt{b^2-4ac}}{2a} } ``` --- ## API Reference ```js const nova = require("@nova-lang/cli"); ``` ### `tokenize(source)` Tokenize a Nova source string into a stream of tokens. ```js const tokens = nova.tokenize('@p "Hello"'); ``` ### `parse(tokens)` Parse a token stream into an AST. ```js const ast = nova.parse(tokens); ``` ### `interpret(ast, env)` Evaluate macros, conditionals, loops, and interpolations in the AST. ```js const { Env } = require("@nova-lang/cli"); const env = new Env(); const interpreted = nova.interpret(ast, env); ``` ### `render(doc, options)` Render an interpreted document to HTML. ```js const html = nova.render(doc, { pretty: true }); ``` ### `renderLatex(doc, options)` Render an interpreted document to LaTeX. ```js const latex = nova.renderLatex(doc); ``` --- ## Configuration ### Custom CSS ```bash nova build doc.nv --css style.css ``` ### Custom HTML Template Create `template.html`: ```html {{title}} {{mathjax}} {{content}} ``` ```bash nova build doc.nv --template template.html ``` ### LaTeX Preamble When using `--latex`, Nova generates a complete LaTeX document. Pass `@meta` fields for document-level configuration. --- ## Standard Library Nova ships with a rich standard library. Load with `@use "nova/std"`: | Package | Description | |-----------------------|------------------------------------------| | `std/sugar` | Truthiness, comparison, string helpers | | `std/functional` | `pipe`, `compose`, `map`, `filter`, etc. | | `std/control` | `when`, `unless`, `switch`, `cond` | | `std/types` | Type checking, conversion, JSON, clone | | `std/strings` | String manipulation utilities | | `std/math` | Math helpers | | `std/lists` | List operations | | `std/datetime` | Date/time formatting, math, ranges | | `std/encoding` | Base64, URL, hex encoding | | `std/colors` | Named colors utility | | `std/random` | Random generation | | `std/json` | JSON read/write utilities | | `std/io` | File I/O helpers | | `std/plot` | Plotting primitives | | `std/components` | Reusable UI components | | `data/csv` | CSV parsing and generation | | `data/json` | JSON processing | | `data/yaml` | YAML processing | | `data/sql` | SQL query generation | | `data/excel` | Excel file support | | `data/stats` | Statistics functions | | `data/transform` | Data transformation pipelines | | `schema/types` | Type system definitions | | `schema/api` | API specification | | `schema/openapi` | OpenAPI code generation | | `schema/grpc` | gRPC/Protobuf code generation | | `schema/graphql` | GraphQL schema generation | | `schema/db` | Database schema generation | | `schema/codegen` | Multi-language code generation | | `schema/validation` | Validation rule generation | | `ui/layout` | Layout components | | `ui/typography` | Typography components | | `ui/form` | Form components | | `ui/navigation` | Navigation components | | `ui/surface` | Surface/card components | | `ui/media` | Media components | | `ui/feedback` | Feedback/alert components | | `nova/http` | HTTP client | | `nova/crypto` | Cryptography (hash, HMAC, AES, UUID) | | `nova/html` | HTML rendering utilities | | `nova/markdown` | Markdown conversion | | `nova/fs` | Filesystem operations | --- ## Examples The `examples/` directory contains many sample `.nv` files: | Example | Demo | |--------------------|-------------------------------------------| | `basics.nv` | Comments, strings, numbers, attributes | | `blocks.nv` | Block types and nesting | | `flow.nv` | `@if`/`@else`, `@for` loops | | `macros.nv` | `@def` macro definitions and calls | | `schemas.nv` | `@schema` and `@service` type definitions | | `tables.nv` | Table variants (array, header+row, mixed) | | `math.nv` | Inline and display math | | `paper.nv` | Complete academic paper example | --- ## License [MIT](LICENSE)