path: root/fsharp.html.markdown

---
language: F#
author: Scott Wlaschin
author_url: http://fsharpforfunandprofit.com/
---

F# is a general purpose functional/OO programming language.  It's free and open source, and runs on Linux, Mac, Windows and more. 

It has a powerful type system that traps many errors at compile time, but it uses type inference so that it read more like a dynamic language.

The syntax of F# is similar to Python:

* Curly braces are not used to delimit blocks of code. Instead, indentation is used.
* Whitespace is used to separate parameters rather than commas.

If you want to try out the code below, you can go to [tryfsharp.org](http://www.tryfsharp.org/Create) and paste it into an interactive REPL.

```csharp

// single line comments use a double slash
(* multi line comments use (* . . . *) pair

-end of multi line comment- *)

// ================================================
// Basic Syntax
// ================================================

// ------ "Variables" (but not really) ------
// The "let" keyword defines an (immutable) value
let myInt = 5
let myFloat = 3.14
let myString = "hello"           //note that no types needed

// ------ Lists ------
let twoToFive = [2;3;4;5]        // Square brackets create a list with
                                 // semicolon delimiters.
let oneToFive = 1 :: twoToFive   // :: creates list with new 1st element
// The result is [1;2;3;4;5]
let zeroToFive = [0;1] @ twoToFive   // @ concats two lists

// IMPORTANT: commas are never used as delimiters, only semicolons!

// ------ Functions ------
// The "let" keyword also defines a named function.
let square x = x * x          // Note that no parens are used.
square 3                      // Now run the function. Again, no parens.

let add x y = x + y           // don't use add (x,y)! It means something
                              // completely different.
add 2 3                       // Now run the function.

// to define a multiline function, just use indents. No semicolons needed.
let evens list =
   let isEven x = x%2 = 0     // Define "isEven" as a sub function
   List.filter isEven list    // List.filter is a library function
                              // with two parameters: a boolean function
                              // and a list to work on

evens oneToFive               // Now run the function

// You can use parens to clarify precedence. In this example,
// do "map" first, with two args, then do "sum" on the result.
// Without the parens, "List.map" would be passed as an arg to List.sum
let sumOfSquaresTo100 =
   List.sum ( List.map square [1..100] )

// You can pipe the output of one operation to the next using "|>"
// Piping data around is very common in F#, similar to UNIX pipes.

// Here is the same sumOfSquares function written using pipes
let sumOfSquaresTo100piped =
   [1..100] |> List.map square |> List.sum  // "square" was defined earlier

// you can define lambdas (anonymous functions) using the "fun" keyword
let sumOfSquaresTo100withFun =
   [1..100] |> List.map (fun x -> x*x) |> List.sum

// In F# there is no "return" keyword. A function always
// returns the value of the last expression used.

// ------ Pattern Matching ------
// Match..with.. is a supercharged case/switch statement.
let simplePatternMatch =
   let x = "a"
   match x with
    | "a" -> printfn "x is a"
    | "b" -> printfn "x is b"
    | _ -> printfn "x is something else"   // underscore matches anything

// F# doesn't allow nulls by default -- you must use an Option type
// and then pattern match.  
// Some(..) and None are roughly analogous to Nullable wrappers
let validValue = Some(99)
let invalidValue = None

// In this example, match..with matches the "Some" and the "None",
// and also unpacks the value in the "Some" at the same time.
let optionPatternMatch input =
   match input with
    | Some i -> printfn "input is an int=%d" i
    | None -> printfn "input is missing"

optionPatternMatch validValue
optionPatternMatch invalidValue

// ------ Printing ------
// The printf/printfn functions are similar to the
// Console.Write/WriteLine functions in C#.
printfn "Printing an int %i, a float %f, a bool %b" 1 2.0 true
printfn "A string %s, and something generic %A" "hello" [1;2;3;4]

// There are also sprintf/sprintfn functions for formatting data
// into a string, similar to String.Format in C#.

// ================================================
// More on functions 
// ================================================

// F# is a true functional language -- functions are first
// class entities and can be combined easy to make powerful
// constructs

// Modules are used to group functions together
// Indentation is needed for each nested module.
module Addition = 

    // define a simple adding function
    let add x y = x + y
    
    // basic usage of a function
    let a = add 1 2
    printfn "1+2 = %i" a
    
    // partial application
    let add42 = add 42
    let b = add42 1
    printfn "42+1 = %i" b
    
    // composition
    let add1 = add 1
    let add2 = add 2
    let add3 = add1 >> add2
    let c = add3 7
    printfn "3+7 = %i" c
    
    // higher order functions
    [1..10] |> List.map add3 |> printfn "new list is %A"
    
    // lists of functions, and more
    let add6 = [add1; add2; add3] |> List.reduce (>>)
    let d = add6 7
    printfn "1+2+3+7 = %i" d

// ================================================
// Data Types 
// ================================================


module DataTypeExamples = 

    // All data is immutable by default

    // Tuples are quick 'n easy anonymous types
    let twoTuple = 1,2
    let threeTuple = "a",2,true

    // Record types have named fields
    type Person = {First:string; Last:string}
    let person1 = {First="john"; Last="Doe"}

    // Union types (aka variants) have a set of choices
    // Only case can be valid at a time.
    type Temp = 
        | DegreesC of float
        | DegreesF of float
    let temp1 = DegreesF 98.6
    let temp2 = DegreesC 37.0

    // Union types are great for modelling state without using flags
    type EmailAddress = 
        | ValidEmailAddress of string
        | InvalidEmailAddress of string

    let trySendEmail email =
        match email with // use pattern matching
        | ValidEmailAddress address -> ()   // send
        | InvalidEmailAddress address -> () // dont send
        
    // Types can be combined recursively in complex ways 
    // without having to create subclasses
    type Employee = 
      | Worker of Person
      | Manager of Employee list

    let jdoe = {First="John";Last="Doe"}
    let worker = Worker jdoe

    // The combination of union types and record types together
    // provide a great foundation for domain driven design.
    // You can create hundreds of little types that accurately 
    // reflect the domain.

    type CartItem = { ProductCode: string; Qty: int }
    type Payment = Payment of float
    type ActiveCartData = { UnpaidItems: CartItem list }
    type PaidCartData = { PaidItems: CartItem list; Payment: Payment}
        
    type ShoppingCart = 
        | EmptyCart  // no data
        | ActiveCart of ActiveCartData
        | PaidCart of PaidCartData    

    // All complex types have pretty printing built in for free
    printfn "twoTuple=%A,\nPerson=%A,\nTemp=%A,\nEmployee=%A" 
             twoTuple person1 temp1 worker
         
// ================================================
// Active patterns
// ================================================

module ActivePatternExamples = 

    // F# has a special type of pattern matching called "active patterns" 
    // where the pattern can be parsed or detected dynamically. 

    // for example, define an "active" pattern to match character types...
    let (|Digit|Letter|Whitespace|Other|) ch = 
       if System.Char.IsDigit(ch) then Digit
       else if System.Char.IsLetter(ch) then Letter
       else if System.Char.IsWhiteSpace(ch) then Whitespace
       else Other         

    // ... and then use it to make parsing logic much clearer
    let printChar ch = 
      match ch with
      | Digit -> printfn "%c is a Digit" ch
      | Letter -> printfn "%c is a Letter" ch
      | Whitespace -> printfn "%c is a Whitespace" ch
      | _ -> printfn "%c is something else" ch

    // print a list
    ['a';'b';'1';' ';'-';'c'] |> List.iter printChar

   
// ================================================
// Conciseness 
// ================================================

module AlgorithmExamples = 

    // F# has a high signal/noise ratio, so code reads 
    // almost like the actual algorithm

    // ------ Example: define sumOfSquares function ------
    let sumOfSquares n = 
       [1..n]              // 1) take all the numbers from 1 to n
       |> List.map square  // 2) square each one
       |> List.sum         // 3) sum the results

    // test   
    sumOfSquares 100 |> printfn "Sum of squares = %A" 
       
    // ------ Example: define a sort function ------  
    let rec sort list =
       match list with
       // If the list is empty   
       | [] ->                            
            []                            // return an empty list
       // If the list is not empty  
       | firstElem::otherElements ->      // take the first element    
            let smallerElements =         // extract the smaller elements    
                otherElements             // from the remaining ones
                |> List.filter (fun e -> e < firstElem) 
                |> sort                   // and sort them
            let largerElements =          // extract the larger ones
                otherElements             // from the remaining ones
                |> List.filter (fun e -> e >= firstElem)
                |> sort                   // and sort them
            // Combine the 3 parts into a new list and return it
            List.concat [smallerElements; [firstElem]; largerElements]

    // test
    sort [1;5;23;18;9;1;3] |> printfn "Sorted = %A" 

// ================================================
// Asynchronous Code
// ================================================

module AsyncExample = 

    // F# has some built-in features to help with async code
    // without encountering the "pyramid of doom"
    //
    // The following example downloads a set of web pages in parallel.

    open System.Net
    open System
    open System.IO
    open Microsoft.FSharp.Control.CommonExtensions   

    // Fetch the contents of a URL asynchronously
    let fetchUrlAsync url =        
        async {                             
            let req = WebRequest.Create(Uri(url)) 
            use! resp = req.AsyncGetResponse()  
            use stream = resp.GetResponseStream() 
            use reader = new IO.StreamReader(stream) 
            let html = reader.ReadToEnd() 
            printfn "finished downloading %s" url 
            }
            
    // a list of sites to fetch
    let sites = ["http://www.bing.com";
                 "http://www.google.com";
                 "http://www.microsoft.com";
                 "http://www.amazon.com";
                 "http://www.yahoo.com"]

    // do it
    sites 
    |> List.map fetchUrlAsync  // make a list of async tasks
    |> Async.Parallel          // set up the tasks to run in parallel
    |> Async.RunSynchronously  // start them off

// ================================================
// .NET compatability
// ================================================

module NetCompatibilityExamples = 

    // F# can do almost everything C# can do, and it integrates
    // seamlessly with .NET or Mono libraries.

    // ------- work with existing library functions  -------
    
    let (i1success,i1) = System.Int32.TryParse("123");
    if i1success then printfn "parsed as %i" i1 else printfn "parse failed"

    // ------- Implement interfaces on the fly! -------
    
    // create a new object that implements IDisposable
    let makeResource name = 
       { new System.IDisposable 
         with member this.Dispose() = printfn "%s disposed" name }

    let useAndDisposeResources = 
        use r1 = makeResource "first resource"
        printfn "using first resource" 
        for i in [1..3] do
            let resourceName = sprintf "\tinner resource %d" i
            use temp = makeResource resourceName 
            printfn "\tdo something with %s" resourceName 
        use r2 = makeResource "second resource"
        printfn "using second resource" 
        printfn "done." 

    // ------- Object oriented code -------
    
    // F# is also a fully fledged OO language.
    // It supports classes, inheritance, virtual methods, etc.

    // interface
    type IEnumerator<'a> = 
        abstract member Current : 'a
        abstract MoveNext : unit -> bool 

    // abstract base class with virtual methods
    [<AbstractClass>]
    type Shape() = 
        //readonly properties
        abstract member Width : int with get
        abstract member Height : int with get
        //non-virtual method
        member this.BoundingArea = this.Height * this.Width
        //virtual method with base implementation
        abstract member Print : unit -> unit 
        default this.Print () = printfn "I'm a shape"

    // concrete class that inherits from base class and overrides 
    type Rectangle(x:int, y:int) = 
        inherit Shape()
        override this.Width = x
        override this.Height = y
        override this.Print ()  = printfn "I'm a Rectangle"

    //test
    let r = Rectangle(2,3)
    printfn "The width is %i" r.Width
    printfn "The area is %i" r.BoundingArea
    r.Print()        

    // ------- extension methods  -------
        
    //Just as in C#, F# can extend existing classes with extension methods.
    type System.String with
       member this.StartsWithA = this.StartsWith "A"

    //test
    let s = "Alice"
    printfn "'%s' starts with an 'A' = %A" s s.StartsWithA    
    
    // ------- events  -------
   
    type MyButton() =
        let clickEvent = new Event<_>()

        [<CLIEvent>]
        member this.OnClick = clickEvent.Publish

        member this.TestEvent(arg) =
            clickEvent.Trigger(this, arg)

    // test
    let myButton = new MyButton()
    myButton.OnClick.Add(fun (sender, arg) -> 
            printfn "Click event with arg=%O" arg)

    myButton.TestEvent("Hello World!")
        
```

## More Information

For more demonstrations of F#, go to the [Try F#](http://www.tryfsharp.org/Learn) site, or my [why use F#](http://fsharpforfunandprofit.com/why-use-fsharp/) series.

Read more about F# at [fsharp.org](http://fsharp.org/).