Syntax highlighting in Vim sucks.
I know. I haven't done as much of it as you have, but I've heard your cries from my cubicle, your desperate pleas for compassion whispered over and again at your desk to an uncaring Vim, your brave face masking knots of terror while chatting at the water cooler, and your wails of despair in the toilet stall when you thought everyone else had gone. It's been hard watching you go through this and for long now I've wished there was something I could do to ease your burden, to still your trembling hand, wipe the tears from your keyboard and tell you that "It's going to be okay." Of course, I couldn't do that. Nobody could. I'd be lying and you know it. My words would come across as naive, empty platitudes at best or, at worst, taken for cruel taunts to mock your effort, halt your progress and rob you of your due standing among the Nerds of Vim.
That was how we all lived. That is... before THEY came!
SinTax is a Vim plugin that provides a DSL for crafting syntax highlighting files.
It takes this:
" Vim syntax plugin for filetype name.
" Maintainer: Barry Arthur <barry.arthur@gmail.com>
" Israel Chauca F. <israelchauca@gmail.com>
" Version: 0.1
" Description: Long description.
" Last Change: 2013-02-01
" License: Vim License (see :help license)
" Location: syntax/vrs.vim
" Website: https://github.com/Raimondi/vrs
name vrs
case ignore
spell default
keyword vrsTodo .Todo : TODO FIXME XXX
partial token \S\+\s\+
partial separator
\%(
\\} # an_escaped_\}
\| # or
[^}] # anything_but_a_}
\)
match vrsNameErr .Error contained : ^\%{token}
match vrsName .Identifier contained : ^\w\+\s\+
match vrsFlavorErr .Error contained
\%(
^\%{token} # if_the_line_starts_with_a_token
\)\@<= # before
\%{token} # a_token
match vrsFlavor .Type contained
\%(
^\%{token} # if_the_line_starts_with_a_token
\)\@<= # before
\%{vrsName} # a_vrsName
match vrsCompItem .Normal contained
\w\+ # a_word
\| # or
\d\+ # a_number
\| # or
,\@<= # a_separator_if_proceeded_by_a_comma
\%{separator}\+
" match a composition atom: \%{pattern-name,count,separator}
match vrsCompose .PreProc contained contains=vrsCompItem
\\%{ # a_literal_\{
\S\+ # a_word_(pattern-name)
, # a_comma
\d\+ # a_number_(count)
, # a_comma
\%{separator}* # an_optional_separator
} # and_a_literal_}
match vrsRegExp .String contains=vrsCompose contained
\%(
^\%{token,2} # if_the_line_starts_with_two_tokens
\)\@<= # before
.* # anything
match vrsCommand contains=vrsName,vrsFlavor,vrsNameErr,vrsFlavorErr,vrsRegExp,vrsComment
^\%{token,2}\S.* # a_line_with_three_'tokens'_minimum
match vrsContinued .String contains=vrsComment
^\s\+\S.* # a_line_with_leading_whitespace_and_a_'token'
match vrsComment .Comment containedin=ALL contains=vrsTodo
\%( # as_long_as
\%(
\\ \\ # (ignoring_any_number_of_double_backslashes_(\\))
\)*
\\ # a_backslash
\)\@<! # doesn't_precede
#.*$ # a_literal_#_followed_by_anything
match vrsError .Error
^ # any_line_starting_with
[^a-zA-Z0-9_#\ ] # anything_that's_not_alphanumeric,_underscore,_hash_or_a_space
.* # and_anything_afterwards
And generates this:
" Vim syntax plugin for filetype name.
" Maintainer: Barry Arthur <barry.arthur@gmail.com>
" Israel Chauca F. <israelchauca@gmail.com>
" Version: 0.1
" Description: Long description.
" Last Change: 2013-02-01
" License: Vim License (see :help license)
" Location: syntax/vrs.vim
" Website: https://github.com/Raimondi/vrs
" Quit when a (custom) syntax file was already loaded
if exists("b:current_syntax")
finish
endif
" Allow use of line continuation.
let s:save_cpo = &cpo
set cpo&vim
syntax case ignore
syntax spell default
syntax keyword vrsTodo TODO FIXME XXX
syntax match vrsNameErr /^\S\+\s\+/ contained
syntax match vrsName /^\w\+\s\+/ contained
syntax match vrsFlavorErr /\%(^\S\+\s\+\)\@<=\S\+\s\+/ contained
syntax match vrsFlavor /\%(^\S\+\s\+\)\@<=^\w\+\s\+/ contained
" match a composition atom: \%{pattern-name,count,separator}
syntax match vrsCompItem /\w\+\|\d\+\|,\@<=\%(\\}\|[^}]\)\+/ contained
syntax match vrsCompose /\\%{\S\+,\d\+,\%(\\}\|[^}]\)*}/ contained contains=vrsCompItem
syntax match vrsRegExp /\%(^\S\+\s\+\S\+\s\+\)\@<=.*/ contains=vrsCompose contained
syntax match vrsCommand /^\S\+\s\+\S\+\s\+\S.*/ contains=vrsName,vrsFlavor,vrsNameErr,vrsFlavorErr,vrsRegExp,vrsComment
syntax match vrsContinued /^\s\+\S.*/ contains=vrsComment
syntax match vrsComment /\%(\%(\\\\\)*\\\)\@<!#.*$/ containedin=ALL contains=vrsTodo
syntax match vrsError /^[^a-zA-Z0-9_#\ ].*/
syntax match vrsError /foo/
hi def link vrsTodo Todo
hi def link vrsNameErr Error
hi def link vrsName Identifier
hi def link vrsFlavorErr Error
hi def link vrsFlavor Type
hi def link vrsCompItem Normal
hi def link vrsCompose PreProc
hi def link vrsRegExp String
hi def link vrsContinued String
hi def link vrsComment Comment
hi def link vrsError Error
hi def link vrsError Error
let b:current_syntax = "vrs"
let &cpo = s:save_cpo
unlet s:save_cpo
" vim: set sw=2 sts=2 et fdm=marker:
Now I feel more equipped to take your hand and say, "there, there."
Depends On: Raimondi's
VimRegStyle
Coming Soon! SinTax is still in development but is ready for user testing. Feedback welcome.
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