command/parser: sketch out help flag integration

This is a special case flag that cannot be replicated with the normal
machinery. It's much easier to special case it. So here we go.

demo/demo.zig

@@ -6,7 +6,11 @@ const CommandBuilder = noclip.CommandBuilder;
 const Choice = enum { first, second };
 
 const cli = cmd: {
-    var cmd = CommandBuilder(u32).init();
+    var cmd = CommandBuilder(u32).init(
+        \\The definitive noclip demonstration utility
+        \\
+        \\This command demonstrates the functionality of the noclip library. cool!!
+    );
     cmd.add_option(.{ .OutputType = struct { u8, u8 } }, .{
         .name = "test",
         .short_tag = "-t",
@@ -51,7 +55,11 @@ const cli = cmd: {
 };
 
 const subcommand = cmd: {
-    var cmd = CommandBuilder(void).init();
+    var cmd = CommandBuilder(void).init(
+        \\Perform some sort of work
+        \\
+        \\This subcommand is a mystery. It probably does something, but nobody is sure what.
+    );
     cmd.add_flag(.{}, .{
         .name = "flag",
         .truthy = .{ .short_tag = "-f", .long_tag = "--flag" },
@@ -78,10 +86,10 @@ pub fn main() !void {
     defer arena.deinit();
     const allocator = arena.allocator();
 
-    var parser = cli.bind(cli_handler, allocator);
+    var parser = cli.create_parser(cli_handler, allocator);
     var context: u32 = 2;
 
-    var subcon = subcommand.bind(sub_handler, allocator);
+    var subcon = subcommand.create_parser(sub_handler, allocator);
     try parser.add_subcommand("verb", subcon.interface());
 
     const iface = parser.interface(&context);

source/command.zig

@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ const ValueCount = parameters.ValueCount;
 const ParameterGenerics = parameters.ParameterGenerics;
 const OptionConfig = parameters.OptionConfig;
 const FlagConfig = parameters.FlagConfig;
+const ShortLongPair = parameters.ShortLongPair;
 const FlagBias = parameters.FlagBias;
 const make_option = parameters.make_option;
 const make_argument = parameters.make_argument;
@@ -72,13 +73,56 @@ fn BuilderGenerics(comptime UserContext: type) type {
 }
 
 pub fn CommandBuilder(comptime UserContext: type) type {
+    const HelpFlagOption = OptionConfig(.{
+        .UserContext = UserContext,
+        .OutputType = bool,
+        .param_type = .Nominal,
+        .value_count = .flag,
+        .multi = false,
+    });
+
     return struct {
-        param_spec: ncmeta.MutableTuple = .{},
+        param_spec: ncmeta.TupleBuilder = .{},
+        // this is a strange hack, but it's easily the path of least resistance
+        help_flag: ShortLongPair = .{ .short_tag = "-h", .long_tag = "--help" },
+        description: []const u8,
+        /// if any subcommands are provided, one of them must be specified, or the command has failed.
+        subcommand_required: bool = true,
 
         pub const UserContextType = UserContext;
 
-        pub fn init() @This() {
+        pub fn init(comptime description: []const u8) @This() {
-            return .{};
+            return .{ .description = description };
+        }
+
+        pub fn create_parser(
+            comptime self: @This(),
+            comptime callback: self.CallbackSignature(),
+            allocator: std.mem.Allocator,
+        ) Parser(self, callback) {
+            return Parser(self, callback){
+                .allocator = allocator,
+                .subcommands = std.hash_map.StringHashMap(ParserInterface).init(allocator),
+            };
+        }
+
+        pub fn set_help_flag(
+            comptime self: *@This(),
+            comptime tags: ShortLongPair,
+        ) void {
+            self.help_flag = tags;
+        }
+
+        pub fn mock_help_parameter(comptime self: @This()) ?HelpFlagOption {
+            if (self.help_flag.short_tag == null and self.help_flag.long_tag == null) return null;
+
+            return HelpFlagOption{
+                .name = "_internal_help_flag",
+                .short_tag = self.help_flag.short_tag,
+                .long_tag = self.help_flag.long_tag,
+                .description = "Print this help message and exit",
+                .flag_bias = true,
+            };
         }
 
         pub fn add_argument(
@@ -104,15 +148,6 @@ pub fn CommandBuilder(comptime UserContext: type) type {
             self.param_spec.add(make_option(bgen.opt_gen(), config));
         }
 
-        pub fn set_help_flag(
-            comptime self: *@This(),
-            comptime bgen: BuilderGenerics(UserContext),
-            comptime config: FlagConfig(bgen.flag_gen()),
-        ) void {
-            _ = self;
-            _ = config;
-        }
-
         pub fn add_flag(
             comptime self: *@This(),
             comptime bgen: BuilderGenerics(UserContext),
@@ -372,16 +407,5 @@ pub fn CommandBuilder(comptime UserContext: type) type {
                 } });
             }
         }
-
-        pub fn bind(
-            comptime self: @This(),
-            comptime callback: self.CallbackSignature(),
-            allocator: std.mem.Allocator,
-        ) Parser(self, callback) {
-            return Parser(self, callback){
-                .allocator = allocator,
-                .subcommands = std.hash_map.StringHashMap(ParserInterface).init(allocator),
-            };
-        }
     };
 }

source/meta.zig

@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ pub fn copy_struct(comptime T: type, source: T, field_overrides: anytype) T {
 /// Stores type-erased pointers to items in comptime extensible data structures,
 /// which allows e.g. assembling a tuple through multiple calls rather than all
 /// at once.
-pub const MutableTuple = struct {
+pub const TupleBuilder = struct {
     pointers: []const *const anyopaque = &[0]*const anyopaque{},
     types: []const type = &[0]type{},
 

source/parameters.zig

@@ -155,12 +155,12 @@ pub fn OptionConfig(comptime generics: ParameterGenerics) type {
     };
 }
 
-pub fn FlagConfig(comptime generics: ParameterGenerics) type {
+pub const ShortLongPair = struct {
-    const ShortLongPair = struct {
+    short_tag: ?[]const u8 = null,
-        short_tag: ?[]const u8 = null,
+    long_tag: ?[]const u8 = null,
-        long_tag: ?[]const u8 = null,
+};
-    };
 
+pub fn FlagConfig(comptime generics: ParameterGenerics) type {
     return struct {
         name: []const u8,
 

source/parser.zig

@@ -62,9 +62,9 @@ fn InterfaceGen(comptime ParserType: type, comptime UserContext: type) type {
 // be extremely type-sloppy here, which simplifies the signature.
 pub fn Parser(comptime command: anytype, comptime callback: anytype) type {
     const UserContext = @TypeOf(command).UserContextType;
+    const parameters = command.generate();
     const Intermediate = command.Intermediate();
     const Output = command.Output();
-    const parameters = command.generate();
 
     return struct {
         intermediate: Intermediate = .{},
@@ -237,6 +237,10 @@ pub fn Parser(comptime command: anytype, comptime callback: anytype) type {
             arg: []const u8,
             argit: *ncmeta.SliceIterator([][:0]u8),
         ) ParseError!void {
+            if (comptime command.help_flag.long_tag) |long|
+                if (std.mem.eql(u8, arg, long))
+                    self.print_help();
+
             inline for (comptime parameters) |param| {
                 const PType = @TypeOf(param);
                 // removing the comptime here causes the compiler to die
@@ -263,6 +267,10 @@ pub fn Parser(comptime command: anytype, comptime callback: anytype) type {
             remaining: usize,
             argit: *ncmeta.SliceIterator([][:0]u8),
         ) ParseError!void {
+            if (comptime command.help_flag.short_tag) |short|
+                if (arg == short[1])
+                    self.print_help();
+
             inline for (comptime parameters) |param| {
                 const PType = @TypeOf(param);
                 // removing the comptime here causes the compiler to die
@@ -414,5 +422,11 @@ pub fn Parser(comptime command: anytype, comptime callback: anytype) type {
                 }
             }
         }
+
+        fn print_help(self: @This()) void {
+            _ = self;
+            std.debug.print("help!!!\n", .{});
+            std.process.exit(0);
+        }
     };
 }