W++ takes a different approach: it's a custom scripting language that looks like Python but is designed for tight integration with .NET itself, including:

Native JIT compilation (via IL emission)

NuGet package import support (via .ingot wrapping)

Familiar syntax (like print, let, for, if) with static structure

IronPython is about bringing Python to .NET. W++ is about making .NET scripting feel more like Python.

Think of it as IronPython’s minimalist, compile-time-powered cousin.

I’ll make the README clearer with a side-by-side W++ vs Python snippet to highlight the similarities better. Thanks a lot for pointing it out!

W++ doesn’t have full-blown data flow analysis (yet!) — the current interpreter walks the AST in a fairly straightforward way, and the JIT just compiles expression trees without SSA or optimization passes. But your idea of analyzing LLM-generated scripts is super interesting. I'd love to explore basic flow inference or a visualizer in the future.

Feel free to open an issue or discussion if you’re curious — would be awesome to collaborate!

I'm a little jealous ;) As someone who codes in both Python and C# mainly, never had to touch IronPython for an employer yet.

I definitely get the appeal of internal DSLs, especially with how powerful C#’s fluent APIs have become. W++ takes a bit of a different path: more like “what if .NET had a native scripting layer that felt expressive and lightweight,” even if that means giving up some safety or flexibility of the host language.

And wow — 3 years with IronPython is no joke. Totally agree on how tricky it can get once you step outside the intended boundaries. I’m keeping W++ focused more on smaller, experimental scripting for now, but your point about memory and lifecycle management is a great reminder for anything that gets more ambitious.

Cheers for the link to Fowler’s DSL article too — gold.

I thought the whole point of these high level langs was that you don't have to worry about that?

But you’re totally right that naming is tricky. I might reconsider down the line if it ever gets serious traction — “Cobra” does sound kinda slick

Appreciate the feedback!

You're absolutely right about JIT startup time. Currently, W++ doesn't do any caching or ahead-of-time work, so there’s a delay on the first run. I’ll explore ways to keep it snappy for quick scripts — maybe a pure interpreter fallback for single-run use cases would help.

Also appreciate the insight on the Python comparison. That “in-between state” you described is exactly where I’m at — trying to blend Python’s simplicity with .NET’s power. But you’re right, the messaging could be cleaner. I’ll adjust the README to better reflect that W++ is its own thing and not a direct clone or pitch to Python devs.

This kind of comment is gold, seriously. Thanks for taking the time.

The idea was: W++ aims for a syntax that feels lightweight like Python (minimal boilerplate, indentation structure), but it also borrows C-style flow and expression flexibility. So technically it’s a bit of a hybrid:

Block structure + minimalism = inspired by Python

let, const, switch, and lambdas = more JS/C-style

I’ll clean up SYNTAX.md and the description to better reflect that. Appreciate you pointing it out!

Only later did I find out it had been labeled as malware by Microsoft — no details, no warning. I emailed their support to clarify what triggered the flag, but I never got a response.

Since then, I’ve made the entire source public here, including the VSCode extension, so folks can inspect and use it freely. If anyone has experience navigating these kinds of takedowns, I’d definitely appreciate insights.

Appreciate the kind words regardless — and who knows, maybe I’ll experiment with optional semicolons in a future version.

Typescript itself is a non starter because of non-configurable "brackets around if conditions" behavior. I pretty much write any language I wanna use these days depending on the task. Use the right tool for the right job. I do generally target perl 5.8 as a backend though. Seemed simpler and most widely supported backend across all systems I came across. Has been super stable since '02.

I think it stays niche because it’s targeted at people knowing the dotnet ecosystem but most of those people reason a lot in OOP/imperative because well, they work with C#.

But it’s amazing to me that F# is still evolving and cutting edge after more than two decades of being extremely niche. You’d think Microsoft would abandon it or let it rot but no. Though I think F# is in fact the laboratory for new language features for C#.

I drew from multiple languages — Python, JavaScript, even a little C-style flavor — to make something that’s readable, expressive, and beginner-friendly, especially for quick scripting in .NET.

Appreciate the suggestion! I’ll make sure the SYNTAX.md is linked more clearly from the README.