HalcyonScript

A native programming language for building Windows desktop applications with a simple, readable syntax.

Version: 0.18.26
Runtime: HalcyonRT

Overview

HalcyonScript is a domain-specific language designed for rapid GUI application development on Windows. It compiles to native executables and includes two UI frameworks:

• HalGUI - Modern themed UI with custom rendering
• HalForms - Windows Forms-like native controls

Features

• Simple, human-readable syntax
• Native Windows GUI support via HalGUI (modern themed UI)
• HalForms framework (Windows Forms-like, native controls)
• Built-in theming system (Dark, Light, Midnight, Ocean, Teal)
• Event-driven programming model
• File I/O operations
• Audio playback support
• Project-based builds with .halproj files
• Single executable distribution
• Windows XP/7/10/11 compatibility

Quick Start

HalGUI (Modern UI)

# Hello World with HalGUI
HalGUI.init()
HalGUI.setTheme("dark")

create window app "My Application" 800 600
create button btn "Click Me" x:20 y:20 width:150 height:40
create label lbl "Status: Ready" x:20 y:80 width:300 height:30

when btn clicked {
    set lbl.text = "Button clicked!"
}

HalGUI.run()

HalForms (Windows Forms-like)

# Hello World with HalForms
HalForms.init()

HalForms.createForm("mainForm", "My Application", 800, 600, 0)
HalForms.createControl("button", "btn", "Click Me", 20, 20, 150, 40)
HalForms.createControl("label", "lbl", "Status: Ready", 20, 80, 300, 30)

on btn.clicked {
    HalForms.setProperty("lbl", "text", "Button clicked!")
}

HalForms.run()

Installation

Requirements

• Windows 10/11
• MinGW-w64 (for building from source)

Build from Source

cd HalcyonScript
build_all.bat

This builds HalcyonScript with both HalGUI and HalForms support.

Run a Script

Halcyon script.hcs

Build a Project

Halcyon build project.halproj

Language Syntax

Variables

var name = "John"
const PI = 3.14159
global counter = 0

Control Flow

if condition {
    # code
} else {
    # code
}

for i from 1 to 10 {
    print i
}

while running {
    # code
}

Functions

func add(a, b) {
    return a + b
}

var result = add(5, 3)

GUI Elements

create window win "Title" 800 600
create button btn "Text" x:10 y:10 width:100 height:30
create label lbl "Text" x:10 y:50 width:200 height:25
create input inp "" x:10 y:90 width:200 height:30
create checkbox chk "Option" x:10 y:130 width:150 height:25
create slider sld x:10 y:170 width:200 height:30 min:0 max:100 value:50
create progress prg x:10 y:210 width:200 height:20
create textarea txt "" x:10 y:250 width:300 height:150

Events

when btn clicked {
    # handle click
}

when inp changed {
    get inp.text -> value
    print value
}

Properties

set lbl.text = "New text"
set btn.visible = true
set chk.checked = false

get inp.text -> userInput
get sld.value -> sliderValue

Dialogs

HalGUI.dialog("Message", "Title", 0, 0)

var file = HalGUI.openFile("Select File", "Text Files (*.txt)|*.txt")
var save = HalGUI.saveFile("Save As", "All Files (*.*)|*.*", "default.txt")

File Operations

var content = File.read("data.txt")
File.write("output.txt", content)
var exists = File.exists("config.ini")

Audio

Audio.create("player")
Audio.load("player", "music.mp3")
Audio.play("player")
Audio.setVolume("player", 80)
Audio.pause("player")
Audio.stop("player")

Project Structure

MyProject/
├── MyProject.halproj
├── src/
│   ├── main.hcs
│   └── utils.hcs
└── assets/
    └── icon.ico

Project File Format

{
    "name": "MyProject",
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "entry": "src/main.hcs",
    "files": ["src/main.hcs", "src/utils.hcs"],
    "build": {
        "output": "dist",
        "icon": "assets/icon.ico"
    }
}

Themes

Available themes: dark, light, midnight, ocean, teal

HalGUI.setTheme("midnight")

Directory Structure

HalcyonScript-Native/
├── src/
│   ├── main.c           # Entry point
│   ├── lexer.c          # Tokenizer
│   ├── parser.c         # AST builder
│   ├── runtime.c        # Interpreter
│   ├── halgui/          # HalGUI framework (modern themed UI)
│   │   ├── halgui_core.c
│   │   ├── halgui_widgets.c
│   │   ├── halgui_render.c
│   │   ├── halgui_themes.c
│   │   ├── halgui_dialogs.c
│   │   └── halgui_audio.c
│   ├── halforms/        # HalForms framework (Windows Forms-like)
│   │   ├── halforms_core.c
│   │   ├── halforms_controls.c
│   │   ├── halforms_menu.c
│   │   ├── halforms_advanced.c
│   │   ├── halforms_dialogs.c
│   │   └── halforms_runtime.c
│   └── launcher/        # Standalone app builder
├── examples/            # Sample programs
├── docs/               # Documentation
└── logo/               # Branding assets

UI Frameworks Comparison

Feature	HalGUI	HalForms
Rendering	Custom GDI+/D3D11	Native Win32
Themes	dark, light, midnight, ocean, teal	System
Compatibility	Windows 7+	Windows XP+
Best for	Modern apps	IDE, DAW, editors
Controls	Styled widgets	Native controls

Examples

See the examples/ directory for sample applications:

HalGUI Examples

• halgui_simple.hcs - Basic GUI demo
• calc.hcs - Calculator
• audioplayer.hcs - Music player

HalForms Examples

• halforms_demo.hcs - HalForms controls demo
• halforms_editor.hcs - Simple text editor

License

MIT License

Author

KAInaps