Logtalk

Logtalk aims to bring together the advantages of object-oriented programming and logic programming. Object-orientation emphasizes developing discrete, reusable units of software, while logic programming emphasizes representing the knowledge of each object in a declarative way.

As an object-oriented programming language, Logtalk's major features include support for both classes (with optional metaclasses) and prototypes, parametric objects, protocols (interfaces), categories (components, aspects, hot patching), multiple inheritance, public/protected/private inheritance, event-driven programming, high-level multi-threading programming, reflection, and automatic generation of documentation.

For Prolog programmers, Logtalk provides wide portability, featuring predicate namespaces (supporting both static and dynamic objects), public/protected/private object predicates, coinductive predicates, separation between interface and implementation, simple and intuitive meta-predicate semantics, lambda expressions, definite clause grammars, term-expansion mechanism, and conditional compilation. It also provides a module system based on de facto standard core module functionality (internally, modules are compiled as prototypes).

Logtalk's syntax is based on Prolog:

?- write('Hello world'), nl. Hello world true.

Defining an object:

:- object(my_first_object). :- initialization((write('Hello world'), nl)). :- public(p1/0). p1 :- write('This is a public predicate'), nl. :- private(p2/0). p2 :- write('This is a private predicate'), nl. :- end_object.

Using the object, assuming is saved in a my_first_object.lgt file:

?- logtalk_load(my_first_object). Hello world true. ?- my_first_object::p1. This is a public predicate true.

Trying to access the private predicate gives an error:

?- my_first_object::p2. ERROR: error(permission_error(access, private_predicate, p2), my_first_object::p2, user)

Anonymous functions

Logtalk uses the following syntax for anonymous predicates (lambda expressions):

{FreeVar1, FreeVar2, ...}/[LambdaParameter1, LambdaParameter2, ...]>>Goal

A simple example with no free variables and using a list mapping predicate is:

| ?- meta::map([X,Y]>>(Y is 2*X), [1,2,3], Ys). Ys = [2,4,6] yes

Currying is also supported. The above example can be written as:

| ?- meta::map([X]>>([Y]>>(Y is 2*X)), [1,2,3], Ys). Ys = [2,4,6] yes

Supported back-end Prolog compilers include B-Prolog, Ciao Prolog, CxProlog, ECLiPSe, GNU Prolog, JIProlog, Quintus Prolog, Scryer Prolog, SICStus Prolog, SWI-Prolog, Tau Prolog, Trealla Prolog, XSB, and YAP. Logtalk allows use of back-end Prolog compiler libraries from within object and categories.

Logtalk features on-line help, a documenting tool (that can generate PDF and HTML files), an entity diagram generator tool, a built-in debugger (based on an extended version of the traditional Procedure Box model found on most Prolog compilers), a unit test framework with code coverage analysis, and is also compatible with selected back-end Prolog profilers and graphical tracers.

Logtalk has been used to process STEP data models used to exchange product manufacturing information. It has also been used to implement a reasoning system that allows preference reasoning and constraint solving.