AeThex-OS/AETHEX_QUICKSTART.md

AeThex Language - Quick Start Guide

🎉 Your Cross-Platform Metaverse Language is Ready!

The AeThex programming language compiles to JavaScript, Lua (Roblox), and soon Verse (UEFN) and C# (Unity). It includes built-in modules for authentication, PII protection, COPPA compliance, and cross-platform data sync.

Installation

1. Build the Packages

# Navigate to the workspace
cd /workspaces/AeThex-OS

# Build the standard library
cd packages/aethex-core
npm install
npm run build

# Build the CLI
cd ../aethex-cli
npm install
npm run build

2. Test the Compiler

# From the CLI directory
cd packages/aethex-cli

# Compile to JavaScript
node bin/aethex.js compile ../../examples/hello.aethex

# Compile to Lua (Roblox)
node bin/aethex.js compile ../../examples/hello.aethex --target roblox

# Test the output
cd ../../examples
node -e "$(cat hello.js); Main();"

You should see: Hello, World from AeThex!

Language Basics

Hello World

reality HelloWorld {
    platforms: all
}

journey Greet(name) {
    platform: all
    notify "Hello, " + name + "!"
}

journey Main() {
    platform: all
    Greet("World")
}

Authentication Example

import { Passport, DataSync } from "@aethex.os/core"

reality AuthSystem {
    platforms: [roblox, web]
}

journey Login(username) {
    platform: all
    
    let passport = new Passport(username, username)
    
    when passport.verify() {
        sync passport across [roblox, web]
        notify "Welcome back, " + username + "!"
        reveal passport
    } otherwise {
        notify "Login failed"
    }
}

COPPA Compliance Example

import { SafeInput, Compliance } from "@aethex.os/core"

reality SecureLeaderboard {
    platforms: [roblox]
    type: "compliance-exam"
}

journey SubmitScore(player, playerName, score) {
    platform: roblox
    
    when !Compliance.isCOPPACompliant(player.age) {
        notify "Players under 13 cannot submit scores publicly"
        return
    }
    
    let nameValidation = SafeInput.validate(playerName)
    
    when !nameValidation.valid {
        notify "Invalid name: contains PII"
        return
    }
    
    notify "Score submitted successfully!"
    reveal { player: nameValidation.clean, score: score }
}

CLI Commands

Compile Files

# Compile to JavaScript (default)
aethex compile myfile.aethex

# Compile to Lua (Roblox)
aethex compile myfile.aethex --target roblox

# Specify output file
aethex compile myfile.aethex --output game.lua

# Watch mode (recompile on changes)
aethex compile myfile.aethex --watch

Create Projects

# Create new project with default template
aethex new my-project

# Create with Passport authentication
aethex new my-project --template passport

# Create game template
aethex new my-project --template game

# Initialize in current directory
aethex init

Language Features

Keywords

• reality - Define a namespace/module
• journey - Define a function
• when/otherwise - Conditional statements
• sync - Synchronize data across platforms
• notify - Output/logging (adapts to platform)
• reveal - Return value from journey
• let - Variable declaration
• import/from - Module imports
• new - Create object instances

Operators

• Arithmetic: +, -, *, /
• Comparison: ==, !=, <, >, <=, >=
• Logical: ! (NOT)
• Member: . (property access)

Standard Library Modules

Passport - Universal Identity

let passport = new Passport("userId", "username")
when passport.verify() {
    notify "User verified!"
}

SafeInput - PII Detection

let result = SafeInput.validate(userInput)
when result.valid {
    notify "Input is safe: " + result.clean
} otherwise {
    notify "Input contains PII"
}

Compliance - Age Gating

when Compliance.isCOPPACompliant(user.age) {
    notify "User is 13 or older"
} otherwise {
    notify "Parental consent required"
}

DataSync - Cross-Platform Sync

sync player.passport across [roblox, web, uefn]

Example Outputs

JavaScript Output

// Generated by AeThex Compiler v1.0.0
// Target: JavaScript

const HelloWorld = {
  platforms: ["all"],
};

function Greet(name) {
  console.log((("Hello, " + name) + " from AeThex!"));
}

function Main() {
  Greet("World");
}

Lua Output (Roblox)

-- Generated by AeThex Compiler v1.0.0
-- Target: Roblox (Lua)

local HelloWorld = {
  platforms = {"all"},
}

local function Greet(name)
  print((("Hello, " .. name) .. " from AeThex!"))
end

local function Main()
  Greet("World")
end

Note: Lua automatically converts operators:

• + → .. (for string concatenation)
• ! → not (logical NOT)
• != → ~= (not equals)

Project Structure

packages/
├── aethex-core/              # Standard Library
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── Passport.ts      # Universal identity
│   │   ├── SafeInput.ts     # PII detection
│   │   ├── Compliance.ts    # Age gating
│   │   └── DataSync.ts      # Cross-platform sync
│   └── lib/                 # Compiled output
│
└── aethex-cli/              # Compiler & CLI
    ├── src/
    │   ├── compiler/
    │   │   ├── Lexer.ts           # Tokenizer
    │   │   ├── Parser.ts          # AST builder
    │   │   ├── Compiler.ts        # Orchestrator
    │   │   ├── JavaScriptGenerator.ts
    │   │   └── LuaGenerator.ts
    │   └── index.ts               # CLI entry
    ├── bin/
    │   └── aethex.js              # Executable
    └── lib/                       # Compiled output

examples/
├── hello.aethex             # Hello World
├── auth.aethex              # Authentication
└── leaderboard.aethex       # COPPA compliance

Compilation Flow

Source (.aethex)
    ↓
Lexer (Tokenization)
    ↓
Parser (AST Generation)
    ↓
Semantic Analysis
    ↓
Code Generator
    ↓
Output (.js, .lua, .verse, .cs)

Supported Platforms

Platform	Target	Status	Extension
Web	JavaScript	✅ Ready	.js
Roblox	Lua	✅ Ready	.lua
UEFN	Verse	🚧 Coming Soon	.verse
Unity	C#	🚧 Coming Soon	.cs

Error Handling

The compiler provides clear error messages with line and column numbers:

❌ Compilation failed with errors:

  myfile.aethex - Unexpected character: @ at line 5, column 10
  myfile.aethex - Expected identifier at line 8, column 3

Development Workflow

1. Write AeThex Code

nano myfile.aethex

2. Compile

aethex compile myfile.aethex

3. Test

# JavaScript
node myfile.js

# Roblox (copy to Studio)
aethex compile myfile.aethex --target roblox

4. Watch Mode (Auto-Recompile)

aethex compile myfile.aethex --watch

Next Steps

1. Try the Examples

   cd packages/aethex-cli
   node bin/aethex.js compile ../../examples/auth.aethex
   

2. Create Your First Project

   aethex new my-first-game
   cd my-first-game
   

3. Read the Full Documentation

   • AETHEX_COMPILER_SPEC.md - Technical details
   • AETHEX_LANGUAGE_PACKAGE.md - Language reference
   • AETHEX_CODE_EXAMPLES.md - Code patterns
   • AETHEX_IMPLEMENTATION.md - Implementation guide

4. Global Installation (Coming Soon)

   npm install -g @aethex.os/cli
   aethex --version
   

Troubleshooting

"npm: command not found"

Install Node.js and npm:

sudo apk add nodejs npm

"Permission denied"

Create home directory:

sudo mkdir -p /home/codespace
sudo chown -R $(whoami):$(whoami) /home/codespace

Compilation Errors

Check syntax against examples and ensure proper indentation.

Contributing

We welcome contributions! Areas to explore:

1. Verse Generator - Add UEFN support
2. C# Generator - Add Unity support
3. Optimizations - Improve code generation
4. Tests - Add comprehensive test suite
5. Documentation - Create tutorials and guides

License

MIT License - Copyright © 2025-2026 AeThex Corporation

---

Happy Coding! Build the next generation of cross-platform metaverse experiences with AeThex! 🚀

For questions or support, refer to the documentation files or create an issue in the repository.