Is CMC a real programming language?

Yes. It has a lexer, a parser, an interpreter, a compiler, a test suite, a language manual, and a package you can install. "Real" means it runs programs and people can build things with it. It is also small enough to read in an afternoon, which most languages are not.

Do I need to be good at math?

No. CMC has the normal four operations and a handful of helpers. You need counting more than math.

What age is CMC for?

The words and blocks are designed so a four year old can copy a working program and change it. The full language has enough depth (recursion, piles, text processing, drawing) for older kids and adults learning their first language.

Why do errors say OOGA?

Because it is funny and it removes fear. A mistake is an ooga -- a bump in the cave. The message underneath always explains the fix in plain words.

How long does it take to learn?

• 10 minutes: print, boxes, one loop.
• 30 minutes: the whole tutorial (see Tutorial).
• A weekend: comfortable with clumps, piles, and text.
• Years: writing big programs well, like any language.

Can I use it in a classroom?

Yes. MIT license, no dependencies, no accounts, no internet. The IDE is a single window. Teachers can print the cheat sheet and the repo has a full test suite for grading projects.

Does it run on a phone or tablet?

Not yet. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux desktops and laptops. A browser version is on the roadmap.

Can CMC make real games?

Small ones, yes -- text adventures, guessing games, drawing toys, and simple animations with wait and skrib. Full graphics games would need more library work; that is part of what "hard to master" means.

Why C++ underneath?

C++ builds one tiny stand-alone program with no runtime to install, and lets cmc compile produce code a learner can grow into. CMC is also small enough that a future version could target other machines.

Is CMC a real language?

No. It has its own grammar (unga blocks, skrib statements, friendly checks) and its own runtime rules (whole-number division, friendly step limits, type-aware errors). The interpreter is written in C++, the same way many languages are written in C.

Can I mix CMC and Python?

Through the compiler: cmc compile hello.cmc makes readable Python. CMC programs cannot import Python libraries directly in v0.1 -- that is on the roadmap.

Why are lists called piles and booleans called gronk?

Because naming things like a caveman makes them sticky in your memory, and because it is fun. Every caveman word also has an English twin you can use instead: snorf/list-style words, gronk/true.

Is it safe for kids to run?

Yes. Programs cannot touch files, networks, or the system in v0.1. The worst thing a program can do is run a very long loop, and CMC stops that for you after about five million steps.

How do I share my program?

Save the .cmc file and send it. It is plain text. Anyone with CMC (or the website's future playground) can run it.

How can I help?

See Contributing. New examples, translations of the dictionary, bug reports with tiny test programs, and classroom stories are all gold.

Next: Glossary.