The Blocks tab is a workshop where you build a program by dragging shapes. Every shape writes a line of CMC for you on the right. It is the easiest way for the very youngest coders to feel the power of code, and it stays useful for planning bigger programs.
The palette (left side)
Blocks are grouped by job:
| Group | Blocks |
|---|---|
| Talking | say (oga), ask (blorp) |
| Boxes | make box (grunk), change box (=), change a spot |
| Choices | binga (if) with a wonga area |
| Loops | booga (repeat), zug (while), zoop each |
| Clumps | clump, give back (ork), call clump |
| Values | number, text, box value, random |
| Piles | make pile, plop into pile, yoink from pile |
| Drawing | skrib circle, dot, line, box, blob, write, color, size, wipe |
Two ways to add a block
- Click a palette block: it lands at the end of your stack.
- Drag a palette block: a ghost follows your mouse and a white line
shows exactly where it will land.
The slots
Blocks have little dark boxes called slots. Slots hold expressions (numbers, text, box names, math). You can fill a slot two ways:
- Click it and type. CMC checks what you typed; if it does not make
sense, the slot tells you.
- Drag a value block into it. The number, text, box, and random blocks
from the Values group turn into the right expression.
Value blocks never sit on their own -- they must live inside a slot. That is on purpose: it is the difference between saying a number and storing one.
Nesting
Drop a block inside another block's shaded area to put it in that block:
booga 3
oga "bang"
binga lap == 3
oga "last one!"
unga
ungaThe white insertion line shows where it will go. You can drag blocks back out into the main stack the same way.
The wonga area
Every binga block has a wonga line. Drop blocks under it to say what happens otherwise. Leave it empty for a plain if.
Right-click menu
| Menu item | What it does |
|---|---|
| Delete | remove the block (and everything inside it) |
| Copy | make a duplicate right after it |
| Move up / Move down | nudge it in its list |
Dragging a block onto the palette (the left column) deletes it, like throwing it away.
Undo
Every change is remembered. Click Undo or press Ctrl+Z. You can undo dozens of steps, including deletions.
Running blocks
Press RUN while the Blocks tab is showing. First CMC checks every slot (a red warning in the status bar tells you which one), then it turns your blocks into CMC text and runs it. Errors still come with line numbers -- they point at the generated code.
Moving between blocks and text
- Send to Text tab copies the generated CMC into the editor. Great for
reading and changing the text version.
- Load from Text tab turns the editor's CMC back into blocks.
Almost every example in the examples/ folder can become blocks. If a line uses something that has no block yet, CMC says so politely and leaves your blocks alone.
A first block program
Build this by hand:
- Drag booga in. Click its count slot, type
3. - Drag oga inside the booga body. Type
"bang!". - Press RUN.
The code panel shows:
booga 3
oga "bang!"
ungabang!
bang!
bang!Next: Keyboard shortcuts.