The browser/editor (ocamlbrowser)

The browser/editor (ocamlbrowser)

This chapter describes OCamlBrowser, a source and compiled interface browser, written using LablTk. This is a useful companion to the programmer.

Its functions are:

navigation through Objective Caml's modules (using compiled interfaces).
source editing, type-checking, and browsing.
integrated Objective Caml shell, running as a subprocess.

14.1

Invocation

The browser is started by the command ocamlbrowser, as follows:

        ocamlbrowser options

The following command-line options are recognized by ocamlbrowser.

-I directory: Add the given directory to the list of directories searched for source and compiled files. By default, only the standard library directory is searched. The standard library can also be changed by setting the CAMLLIB environment variable.
-nolabels: Ignore non-optional labels in types. Labels cannot be used in applications, and parameter order becomes strict.
-oldui: Old multi-window interface. The default is now more like Smalltalk's class browser.
-rectypes: Allow arbitrary recursive types during type-checking. By default, only recursive types where the recursion goes through an object type are supported.
-w warning-list: Enable or disable warnings according to the argument warning-list.

Most options can also be modified inside the application by the Modules - Path editor and Compiler - Preferences commands. They are inherited when you start a toplevel shell.

14.2

Viewer

This is the first window you get when you start OCamlBrowser. It displays a search window, and the list of modules in the load path. At the top a row of menus.

File - Open and File - Editor give access to the editor.
File - Shell creates an Objective Caml subprocess in a shell.
View - Show all defs displays the signature of the currently selected module.
View - Search entry shows/hides the search entry just below the menu bar.
Modules - Path editor changes the load path. Modules - Reset cache rescans the load path and resets the module cache. Do it if you recompile some interface, or get confused about what is in the cache.
Modules - Search symbol allows to search a symbol either by its name, like the bottom line of the viewer, or, more inter