05. Inspection and the Live Workflow

Frothy is meant to be inspected while it is live. The prompt-facing surface is not only for evaluation; it is also for asking the running image what it contains.

The Core Prompt Tools

Use these first:

words
show @blink
see @blink
core @blink
info @blink

What they are for:

  • words lists the currently live names
  • show @name and see @name expose the normalized binding view
  • core @name shows debug-oriented core rendering
  • info @name reports binding metadata such as owner, kind, and persistability

Here is a more realistic pass:

record Counter [ value ]
counter is Counter: 2
counter.bump is fn [ set counter->value to counter->value + 1 ]

words
show @counter
show @counter.bump
info @counter
info @counter.bump

What you are looking for:

  • words should show both counter and counter.bump
  • show @counter should render the current record value
  • show @counter.bump should render the normalized code body
  • info should tell you which binding is an overlay value, what kind it is, and whether it is persistable

The Usual Loop

A normal Frothy loop looks like this:

  1. define or rebind a top-level slot
  2. run it immediately
  3. inspect what you just changed
  4. redefine it if needed
  5. save only when the overlay is in a state worth keeping

That loop is not a shortcut. It is the intended product surface.

For example:

record Cursor [ x, y ]
cursor is Cursor: 0, 0
moveRight is fn [ set cursor->x to cursor->x + 1 ]

moveRight:
show @cursor
moveRight:
show @cursor
save

This is normal Frothy work:

  • define a small piece of state
  • define a small operation
  • run it immediately
  • inspect the actual live result
  • save only once the state is worth keeping

Prompt Health

The maintained REPL:

  • accumulates incomplete multiline input
  • evaluates complete top-level forms
  • keeps the prompt alive after recoverable errors
  • lets Ctrl-C interrupt pending evaluation or pending multiline input

If the prompt state feels unclear, start with:

words
info @boot
show @boot

If you think the wrong definition is live, add:

show @yourName
see @yourName
info @yourName

That usually tells you whether the problem is:

  • the slot you rebound is not the slot you thought you changed
  • the current value is different from the source in your head
  • the binding is base-owned when you thought it was overlay-owned

Inspection Is About The Image

Frothy’s inspection tools are there to tell you about the current binding and image state, not about a separate source-of-truth file on the host. That is why rebinding, persistence, and inspection fit together cleanly.

Next: Persistence, boot, and recovery .