jolt/test/conformance/SPEC.md
Yogthos e66a91750e Numbers-style category dispatch for binary numeric ops
Arithmetic and comparisons lowered to raw Chez ops, so an operand outside
Chez's tower (BigDecimal) crashed with a raw condition, and Chez contagion
leaked: (* 1.0 0) gave exact 0 where the JVM gives 0.0, (* ##Inf 0) gave 0
instead of ##NaN, (/ 1 0) raised an untyped error.

One seam now (host/chez/seq.ss): call position emits jolt-n* macros with the
both-Chez-numbers fast path open-coded; value position folds through the same
binary ops. Anything outside the tower falls to per-op slow hooks that
java/bigdec.ss extends, so bigdec arithmetic works in every position (the old
static-only :bigdec typing limitation is gone). JVM rules patched into the
fast path: a double operand wins, an exact zero divisor throws
ArithmeticException while a double zero divisor yields Inf/NaN, quot/rem/mod
cover ratios and doubles, min/max return the original operand with NaN
winning, a nil operand is NPE and a non-number CCE, zero-arg -// throw
ArityException at runtime instead of failing expansion.

Also: with-precision now binds *math-context* and bigdec results round with
real RoundingMode semantics (UNNECESSARY throws; division rounds to precision
instead of throwing); rationalize goes through the shortest decimal print
like BigDecimal.valueOf (the identity stub is gone); ratios coerce to bigdec
like Numbers.toBigDecimal; min/max int-literal operands no longer coerce to
flonum in the numeric pass.

Perf neutral: fib and seq benches unchanged (the fast path is two type checks
the optimizer folds); hinted fl/fx paths untouched. 19 JVM-certified corpus
rows; cts baseline 5614->5730 pass, 192->88 errors, 84->79 baselined
namespaces.
2026-07-02 06:41:45 -04:00

194 lines
11 KiB
Markdown

# The jolt conformance spec
This directory defines jolt's behavior as a **host-neutral, executable language
specification**: a data file of cases, certified against reference Clojure, with a
feature profile that lets any runtime declare a conformance *level*. The goal is to
make hosting jolt on a new runtime (and proving it correct) a mechanical exercise:
read one data file, run each case, compare, report.
## The artifacts
| File | Role | Generated by |
|------|------|--------------|
| `test/chez/corpus.edn` | **The spec.** ~2900 cases of `{:suite :label :expected :actual}`, `:expected` **sourced from reference JVM Clojure**. | `test/conformance/regen-corpus.clj` |
| `test/conformance/profile.edn` | Per-case **feature classification** — which non-portable cases need which host capability. | `certify.clj --profile` |
| `test/conformance/known-divergences.edn` | The few rows whose JVM value is an opaque host object that can't round-trip to readable source (Java arrays/transients/atoms/beans/proxies print as `#object[..@addr]`), so the corpus keeps jolt's value. | `regen-corpus.clj` leftovers, hand-checked |
| `test/conformance/regen-corpus.clj` | Sources every `:expected` from reference **JVM Clojure** in one process. | — |
| `test/conformance/certify.clj` | Certifies `:expected` against reference **JVM Clojure**; gates on new/stale divergences; emits the profile. | — |
`corpus.edn` is **JVM-sourced**: `regen-corpus.clj` evaluates each case's `:actual`
on reference JVM Clojure and writes the JVM value as `:expected`. **`corpus.edn` is
the canonical, frozen contract**: it is what every runtime consumes, what
`certify.clj` certifies, and where new cases are authored directly.
## Row schema
```edn
{:suite "numbers / arithmetic" ; grouping; "<suite> :: <label>" is the case id
:label "integer add" ; unique within a suite
:actual "(+ 1 2)" ; Clojure source to evaluate
:expected "3"} ; Clojure source whose value it must equal,
; or the keyword :throws
```
- `[:suite :label]` is the **canonical, unique case id** (the generator
disambiguates duplicate labels with ` (N)`).
- Comparison is **value-equality** (`=`), never string/printed-form — so map/set
iteration order never matters.
- Because comparison is `=`, a **type** or **laziness** difference is invisible to a
plain value row: `(= [0 1] '(0 1))` is true, so a fn returning a vector where
Clojure returns a seq still passes. Pin those explicitly — container/element type
with a predicate row (`(seq? …)`, `(vector? …)`, `(every? seq? …)`), and laziness
with a `(take n (… (range)))` row over an infinite source (it hangs, not just
diverges, if the fn isn't lazy). The `seq / lazy over infinite` suite does both.
- `:expected :throws` asserts evaluating `:actual` raises.
## The oracle: reference JVM Clojure
Historically every `:expected` was hand-written. `certify.clj` removes that
weakness: it evaluates every `:actual` (and `:expected`) on **JVM Clojure** in a
fresh `user` namespace and checks jolt's `:expected` against what real Clojure
produces. Of ~2740 vanilla-certifiable rows, **>2730 match reference Clojure
exactly**. The rest are classified (see below) — none are silently wrong.
```sh
clojure -M test/conformance/certify.clj # gate
clojure -M test/conformance/certify.clj test/chez/corpus.edn --edn r.edn # + report
clojure -M test/conformance/certify.clj test/chez/corpus.edn --profile test/conformance/profile.edn
```
The gate fails only on a **new** (unclassified) divergence or a **stale**
allowlist entry; flaky timing-dependent cases (`future-cancel`) are tolerated.
## Conformance levels & the feature profile
Not every case is portable: some assume a host capability jolt has on one runtime
but not another (Java interop, real threads, BigDecimal). `profile.edn` classifies
each **non-portable** case by the feature it requires. Cases *not* in the profile
are **portable** — they must pass on any faithful Clojure.
A runtime's **conformance level** = portable cases + the feature families it
implements. Current profile (≈2735 portable, ≈167 non-portable):
| Feature | Meaning |
|---------|---------|
| `:numerics/double-only` | all-double numeric model — no Ratio/BigDecimal/float; `(/ 1 2)``0.5` |
| `:concurrency/snapshot` | isolated-heap futures/agents/pmap — captured atoms are snapshotted, not shared |
| `:host/jvm-interop` | Java classes / `instance?` on host classes / proxy / bean / definterface |
| `:host/arrays` | Java arrays (`into-array`, `int-array`, …) |
| `:async/core-async` | `clojure.core.async` channels/`go` |
| `:runtime/eval` | runtime `eval` / `load-string` |
| `:reader/jolt` | jolt reader features (`#?(:jolt …)`) + syntax-quote literal collapse |
| `:printer/jolt` | jolt's rendering of transients/atoms/`print-method` overrides |
| `:strictness/jolt` | intentionally stricter (throws on odd `assoc!` args, etc.) |
| `:impl/representation` | representation detail (e.g. syntax-quote yields a `list?`, not a `Cons`) |
| `:bug` | a *known defect* (tracked bead) — not a host difference |
## Seq semantics
Values alone don't pin laziness — an eager `map` and a lazy `map` return the same
elements. The spec certifies seq *semantics* by reducing them to values with a
side-effect counter, so the corpus catches a laziness regression the value
comparison would miss.
**Laziness (certified — jolt matches JVM).** The whole producer family
(`map`/`filter`/`remove`/`take`/`drop`/`concat`/`take-while`/`drop-while`/`mapcat`/
`partition`/`partition-all`/`partition-by`/`keep`/`keep-indexed`/`map-indexed`/
`distinct`/`interpose`/`interleave`/`take-nth`/`reductions`/`tree-seq`/`replace`)
is lazy at construction: building over a side-effecting source realizes **zero**
elements (`lazy / family is lazy at construction`). Realization order is
left-to-right, `take`/`nth`/`drop` realize exactly as far as demanded, a lazy seq
memoizes (realize-once across walks), and `next` realizes head + one lookahead
while `rest` realizes only the head (`lazy / realization order & count`,
`lazy / realization is memoized`, `lazy / realization timing`). A lazy result is
`clojure.lang.LazySeq`.
**Accepted divergences.** jolt is a simpler, finer-grained superset of JVM seq
behavior; two classes diverge by representation, never by value, and are
allowlisted in `known-divergences.edn`:
- **`:seq-type-model`** (`seq-type-model / …` suite, jolt-aei7) — jolt reifies
every seq as `PersistentList` (eager) or `LazySeq` (deferred). JVM has a
specialized class per producer (`Cons`, `Iterate`, `LongRange`, `Repeat`,
`Cycle`, `PersistentVector$ChunkedSeq`, `StringSeq`, `KeySeq`/`ValSeq`, `RSeq`,
`ArraySeq`, `SubVector`), so `(class …)` differs. `instance?
clojure.lang.ISeq/Sequential` and all values/laziness are correct.
- **`:chunking-model`** (`chunking-model / …` suite, jolt-mm6v) — jolt seqs are
unchunked: forcing one element realizes one, where JVM realizes a ~32-element
chunk; `mapcat`/`dedupe` realize 0 at construction where JVM forces the first
chunk. Strictly finer-grained laziness, decided after the chunk fast path
(jolt-j9dz) was made O(n).
## Narrow integer types
jolt unifies every integer as one exact-integer type (`:integer-box-model`,
jolt-k9sw). `(byte n)`/`(short n)`/`(int n)` produce value-correct integers —
arithmetic, `=`, and `hash` behave exactly as the JVM — but report `Long`, not
`Byte`/`Short`/`Integer`, so `(class (byte 5))` and `(instance? Byte (byte 5))`
diverge. This is substrate-inherent: a Chez fixnum is an immediate `identical?`
to the plain integer (nothing to tag, and numbers carry no metadata), so the only
faithful representation is a boxed type — which would crash the compiled
arithmetic fast path (both operands Chez numbers → the raw Chez op) or force
every `+`/`-`/`*` through an unwrapping dispatcher, de-optimizing all
arithmetic. Same shape as the accepted BigInt-vs-Long unification.
## Number operations
Binary arithmetic and comparisons follow the JVM's `Numbers.ops(x, y)` category
dispatch. Every position (call, value, higher-order) funnels a binary op through
one seam (`host/chez/seq.ss`): operands inside Chez's tower take the native op
with the JVM contagion rules patched in; an operand outside it (BigDecimal)
falls to a slow hook the numeric shim extends (`host/chez/java/bigdec.ss`); a
non-numeric operand throws `ClassCastException`. The rules the corpus pins
(`numbers / ops dispatch`, `numbers / with-precision`, `numbers / rationalize`):
- A double operand wins: `(* 1.0 0)` is `0.0` (Chez's exact-zero shortcut must
not leak), `(* ##Inf 0)` is `##NaN`, `(+ 1.5M 2.0)` is `3.5`.
- Division: an exact zero divisor throws `ArithmeticException`; a double zero
divisor yields `##Inf`/`##-Inf`/`##NaN`. `(/ 1M 3M)` with no bound
`*math-context*` throws (non-terminating); under `with-precision` it rounds.
- `quot`/`rem`/`mod` cover the full tower (ratios truncate; doubles keep double;
`mod` takes the divisor's sign; zero divisor throws in both worlds).
- `min`/`max` return the *original* operand (`(min 1 2.0)` is `1`, exact); a
`##NaN` operand wins.
- `with-precision` binds `*math-context*`; BigDecimal results round to the
precision with the `java.math.RoundingMode` semantics (default `HALF_UP`,
`UNNECESSARY` throws).
- `rationalize` routes a double through its shortest decimal print
(`BigDecimal.valueOf`), so `(rationalize 1.1)` is `11/10`, not the exact
binary expansion.
## Hosting jolt on a new runtime
1. Implement the reader + analyzer + a backend for your runtime (see the Chez port
under `host/chez/` for a worked example).
2. Write a ~30-line harness that, for each corpus row, evaluates `:actual` and
`:expected` and compares by value-equality (skip `:throws` rows to an
expect-raises check). Pseudocode:
```
(doseq [{:keys [suite label actual expected]} (read-edn "test/chez/corpus.edn")]
(let [feats (profile-features [suite label])] ; from profile.edn
(when (subset? feats my-implemented-features) ; only cases I claim to support
(record! [suite label]
(if (= :throws expected)
(raises? actual)
(value= (eval actual) (eval expected)))))))
```
3. Run it. Your **conformance level** is the set of feature families with no
failures. Portable-only is the floor; each feature you implement raises it.
The reference harness does exactly this on Chez: `host/chez/run-corpus.ss` (the
analyzer runs on Chez → Chez runtime), with a regression floor. Run it via `make
corpus`.
## Maintaining the spec
- **Add/change cases**: edit `test/chez/corpus.edn` directly, then re-source the
answers with `regen-corpus.clj`.
- **Re-certify**: `clojure -M test/conformance/certify.clj`. A new divergence is
either a real bug (file it, mark the allowlist entry `:bug` + `:bead`) or a
deliberate delta (classify it in `known-divergences.edn`).
- **Refresh the profile**: re-run with `--profile test/conformance/profile.edn`.
- **Re-floor the runtime gate** when parity rises (`host/chez/run-corpus.ss`).