Elixir language reference

[tmbb]

@rvirding

What a binary looks like is very much syntax, the same as for all the other data types.

I don’t think we agree. You say it looks like it is syntax. I say it is syntax. It’s a sequence of symbols that’s translated into an AST in a very unconventional way compared to the rest of the language (the same goes for maps, tuples, etc).

@rvirding

For most users of Elixir whether parts of the “standard syntax” like def and if are built-in syntax or macros is completely irrelevant.

You’ve written this, which makes me think you think these cases are analogous. My position is that def and if look like syntax (they are turned into an AST node the way any function call is), while <<...>> is syntax (the parser does funny stuff with it to turn it into an AST node).

Or am I misunderstanding your position?

EDIT: The individual expressions separated by commas inside of a <<...>> are certainly not syntax (but they do look like it, enough to fool me before trying quote a binary quote do <<...>> end, like José showed above).