REBOL For Dummies®

Contents

Introduction

About This Book

How to Use This Book

Three Presumptuous Assumptions

How This Book Is Organized

Part I: Joining the REBOLution

Part II: Basic Training

Part III: Advanced Infantry Training

Part IV: Live-Fire Exercises

Part V: Tactics and Maneuvering (A REBOLer is Born)

Part VI: REBOL Victories

Part VII: The Part of Tens

Appendix

Icons Used in This Book

Where to Go from Here

Part I: Joining the REBOLution

Chapter 1: A REBOL Tour

What's REBOL? And How Do You Say It?

Many platforms, one language

Messaging the world: Fantastic!

REBOL

REBOL/Serve

Other REBOLs

Let the REBOLs Begin (Startup)

Starting the console

From a script

"Hello World" and More

Valuing things

Numbering

Timing

Dating

Counting money

(Tiptoeing through the) tuples

Using strings

Tagging

E-mailing with ease

Locating URLs

Filing files

Issuing issues

Biting into binary

Shutting Down for the Day

Chapter 2: Interfacing with REBOL

Meeting the Console

Commanding the command prompt

Interrupting a script

Entering command-line input

Viewing history

Busy indicator

Pressing special keys

Using advanced console operations

Finding Help

Getting immediate console help

Accessing extended help

Subscribing to the mailing list

Other offline help

Sending feedback

Upgrading

Part II: Basic Training

Chapter 3: Starring in Your Own Scripts

Creating and Editing Scripts

Creating text files for REBOL scripts

Formatting the file that holds the script

Using the right file suffix

Structuring the Scripts

Heading up REBOL

Prefacing and embedding scripts

Stacking Blocks to Build Scripts

Commenting Your Code

Using human-readable code (comments)

Writing documentation

Using the REBOL Style Guide

Formatting the REBOL way

Creating standardized word names

Putting all the right stuff in script headers

Making informative function headers

Selecting script filenames

Including files

Embedding examples

Debugging embedded code

Minimizing globals

Chapter 4: REBOL's Family Values

Putting Values to Work

Tinkering with datatypes

Making datatype models

Creating fundamental datatypes

Using datatype classifications

Choosing the Right Type of Value

Manipulating quantities

Editing text values

Thinking logic

Saving and retrieving data

Building in efficiency

Surfing Internet values

Part III: Advanced Infantry Training

Chapter 5: Values Bravely Advance

Using Words in REBOL

Building with Blocks

Evaluating Values

Looping loops

Powering with parentheses

Varying Variables

Making Functions

Finding Paths

Managing Messages

Talking in Dialects

Chapter 6: Expressions, Bringing a Smile to Your Face

Expressing Information

Getting into blocks

Changing values

Choosing the right words

Evaluating Expressions

Using console input

Scanning simple values

Plugging blocks in as data

Following the script

Plucking strings

Avoiding errors

Trying blocks

Evaluating words

Stopping evaluation

Responding Conditionally

Looking inside blocks

Doing any and all functions

Coding conditional loops

Ducking common mistakes

Chapter 7: Expressions, Your Smile Widens

Repeating Evaluation

Looping

Repeating

Using the for function

Benefiting from the foreach function

Making forall and forskip friends

Keep going forever

Breaking evaluation

Selecting What to Evaluate

Selecting

Switching

Evaluating Words

Reading word names

Determining usage

Setting words

Getting words

Using literal words

Handling unset words

Protecting words

Understanding word datatypes

Furnishing Functions

Providing arguments

Getting help for functions

Implementing user-defined functions

Controlling arguments

Making refinements

Evaluating Objects

Making objects

Accessing

Using derived objects

Determining self values

Chapter 8: The World Series

Meeting Series

Creating Series

Traversing

Moving back and forth

Changing positions

Looping

Using Common Series

Pseudotyping to your advantage

Checking length

Jumping to head or tail

Dealing with none

Extracting Data

Employing the simple method

Comparing the values

Searching a Series

Finding

Applying constraints

Matching

Using wildcards

Going backward

Modifying

Powering modification functions

Effecting changes

Copying and Adding a New Reference

Adding a new reference to a series

Copying a series

Copying part of a series

Copying an embedded series

Initializing a series

Sorting

Sorting quickly

Refining your sorts

Part IV: Live-Fire Exercises

Chapter 9: Files: Teaching Them Reading and Writing

Naming

Putting spaces in filenames

Using a URL scheme

Attaching paths

Reading

Getting text

Handling binary files

Reading over networks

Selecting parts

Writing

Saving text

Writing binary files

Writing over networks

Appending

Handling Complete Lines

Converting Line Endings

Obtaining Information about Files

File Permissions

Using default permissions

Setting new permissions

Bonus script

Chapter 10: Directories and Ports

Traversing Directories

Getting the current directory

Changing the current directory

Listing files in the current directory

Manipulating Directories

Reading what's in your directories

Managing directory systems

Opening and closing directories

Creating new directories

Renaming files

Deleting files

Opening Ports

Using simple techniques to open and close ports

Opening new files

Overwriting files

Using line access

Controlling access to files

Handling files larger than memory

Passing references

Chapter 11: Math: Minus the Complexity but Plus the Usefulness

Constructing Your Mathematical Statements

Adding the Basics

Using scalar datatypes in math operations

Controlling precedence with parentheses

Generating random values

Handling math errors

Converting datatypes

Using Advanced Mathematics

Logging logarithmic and power operations

Angling trigonometry operations

Coding with Logic

Using REBOL logic

Applying logic operators

Comparing Numbers

Using comparison operators

Chapter 12: Parsing, or Watching Stuff Fall to Pieces, Fun!

About Parsing

Splitting

Creating Grammar Rules

Skipping Forward

Matching Types

Recursing Rules

Evaluating Code

Returning value

Pulling apart expressions

Copying input

Marking input

Modifying input

Parsing objects

Debugging

Handling Spaces

Using the parse Dialect

Chapter 13: Networking and Other Ways of Reaching Out

Setting Up Networking

Using URLs

Working the Web with HTTP

Fingering Information

Transferring Files with FTP

Retrieving files

Sending files

Manipulating items on the server

You've Got Mail!

Grabbing mail with POP

Sending mail by using SMTP

Finding Domains

Looking up DNS names and IP numbers

Converting to domain names

Finding who's who with whois

Timing Yourself with daytime

Accessing News with NNTP

Networking with Ports

Part V: Tactics and Maneuvering (A REBOLer is Born)

Chapter 14: Rounding the Databases

Getting Comfy with REBOL Databases

Types of databases

Creating (and goofing around with) a simple flat-file database

Using Blocks of Values

Using a Script to Build a Database

Looking at a database-building script

Understanding database scripts

Manipulating Text Files

Structuring Databases

Saving Data to a File

Working with Headers

Using column headers

Getting at file headers

Chapter 15: Going Postal with E-Mail

Reading E-Mail

Letting REBOL get your mail

Making messages readable

Handling headers

Looking at one message at a time

Sending E-Mail

Configuring your e-mail setup

Utilizing separate mail servers

Sending data

Working with headers

Handling multiple recipients

Sending bulk mail

Manipulating E-Mail

Reading and sending attachments

Removing messages

Setting filters

Chapter 16: Out on the Web

Reading Web Pages

Downloading a Web page

Downloading multiple pages

Monitoring Web Pages

Monitoring for updates

Monitoring multiple pages

Sending Web Pages

Sending a Web page via e-mail

Uploading to a Web site

Building Web Pages

Using REBOL to create Web pages

Creating dynamic content

Enabling automatic updating

Part VI: REBOL Victories

Chapter 17: To Server and Protect

Using REBOL for Server Applications

Running on many platforms

Developing applications on your computer

Putting REBOL on Your Server

Obtaining the right version

Installing on the server

Configuring REBOL on your server

Using REBOL on your server

What's a Good Server Application?

Monitoring logs

Analyzing logs

Doing things automatically

Sending yourself automatic reports by e-mail

Managing files

Using server power

Chapter 18: CGI, or Doing unCommon Gateway Interfacing

Coding the CGI Basics

Setting your Web server for CGI

Configuring for Microsoft IIS

Using the standard script header

Creating a REBOL CGI Application

Invoking REBOL scripts from the Web

Outputting to CGI from REBOL

Installing security

Getting REBOL to Output HTML

Easing into HTML

Employing file tricks

Using HTML Enhancements with REBOL

Using REBOL with CSS

Joining REBOL and PHP

Filling Out Forms

Chapter 19: Dialects ("I Canna Hold 'er, Kaptan, Activate REBOL")

Understanding the Power of Dialects

Writing Basic Rules for Dialects

Constructing Examples of Dialects

Block operations

Parsing sub-blocks

Looking at the REBOL News Dialect

Opening the connection

Getting help

Reading things

Posting

Miscellaneous

Part VII: The Part of Tens

Chapter 20: Ten Really Short and Sweet REBOL Scripts

Listing a Directory (Sorted)

Sending Files via E-Mail

Checking Your E-Mail

One-Lining a CGI Web Application

Looking at HTML Headers on Web Pages

Pulling out Web Page Titles

Printing 100 Random Passwords

Checking on a Newsgroup

Doing a Web Page File Directory

Finding Out about Domain Names

Chapter 21: Ten Advanced REBOL Techniques

Parsing and Dialects

Valuing Values

Basic Building Blocks

Accepting Objects without Objection

Functioning with Functions

Expressing Expressions

Manipulating Databases

Sending E-Mail to the World

Constructing Web Pages

Applying Web Applications

Appendix: About the CD System Requirements

How to Use the CD

What You'll Find

If You've Got Problems (of the CD Kind)

Index