1. Introduction
The TDF notation compiler, tnc, is a tool for translating TDF capsules to and from text. This paper gives a brief introduction to how to use this utility and the syntax of the textual form of TDF. The version here described is that supporting version 3.1 of the TDF specification.
tnc has four modes, two input modes and three output modes. These are as follows:
| Mode | Description |
|---|---|
decode | Translate an input TDF capsule into the tnc internal representation. |
read | Translate an input text file into the internal representation. |
encode | Translate the internal representation into an output TDF capsule. |
write | Translate the internal representation into an output text file. |
dot | Translate the internal representation into an output Dot format graph, suitable for processing with Graphviz tools. |
Due to the modular nature of the program it is possible to form versions of tnc in which not all the modes are available. Passing the -version flag to tnc causes it to report which modes it has implemented.
Any application of tnc consists of the composite of an input mode and an output mode. The default action is read-encode, i.e. translate an input test file into an output TDF capsule. Other modes may be specified by passing the following command line options to tnc:
-decodeor-d-reador-r-encodeor-e-writeor-w
The only other really useful action is decode-write, i.e. translate an input TDF capsule into an output text file. This may also be specified by the -print or -p option. The actions decode-encode and read-write are not precise identities, they do however give equivalent input and output files.
In addition, the decode mode may be modified to accept a TDF library as input rather than a TDF capsule by passing the additional flag:
-libor-l
to tnc.
The overall syntax for tnc is as follows:
% tnc [ options ... ] input_file [ output_file ]
If the output file is not specified, the standard output is used.