NAME

       xotclsh - Tcl Shell containing object-oriented scripting language XOTcl

SYNOPSIS

       xotclsh ?filename arg arg ...?
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DESCRIPTION

       xotclsh  is  a shell-like application that reads XOTcl commands from its standard input or
       from a file and evaluates them.  Similarly as the relation between tclsh and wish,  xowish
       provides  all  functionality  of  xotclsh  and  provides as well predefined support for TK
       widgets.

       XOTcl (XOTcl, pronounced exotickle) is an  object-oriented  scripting  language  based  on
       MIT's OTcl. It is intended as a value added replacement of OTcl.

       Scripting  languages,  such  as Tcl, are designed for glueing components together, provide
       features such as dynamic extensibility and dynamic typing with automatic conversion,  that
       make them well suited for rapid application development.

       The object system of XOTcl enables a user to to define objects, classes, and meta-classes.
       Classes are special objects with the purpose of managing other objects. ``Managing'' means
       that a class controls the creation and destruction of its instances and that it contains a
       repository of methods accessible for the instances. Every  object  may  be  enhanced  with
       object-specific  methods. XOTcl supports single and multiple inheritance. All object-class
       and class-class relationships in XOTcl are introspectable and can be  dynamically  changed
       at  arbitrary times.  Ambiguities in name resolution of methods are avoided through method
       chaining through "next", which does not require explicit method naming.

       XOTcl combines the ideas of scripting and object-orientation in a way that  preserves  the
       benefits  of  both  of them. It is equipped with several new language constructs that help
       building and managing complex systems. We added the following support:

       Dynamic Object Aggregations, to provide dynamic  aggregations  through  nested  namespaces
       (objects).

       Nested Classes, to reduce the interference of independently developed program structures.

       Assertions,  to reduce the interface and the reliability problems caused by dynamic typing
       and, therefore, to ease the combination of many components.

       Meta-data, to enhance self-documentation of objects and classes.

       Per-object mixins, as a means to give an object dynamically access to the methods  of  one
       or several supplemental classes.

       Per-class  mixins,  as a means to give all instances of an class dynamically access to the
       methods of one or several supplemental classes.

       Filters as a means of abstractions over method  invocations  to  implement  large  program
       structures, like design patterns.

       XOTcl provides a value-added replacement of Tcl package loading providing integration with
       object-oriented constructs and tracking/tracing of component loading.

VARIABLES

       xotclsh sets all variables that tclsh sets, and additionally the following variables:

       ::xotcl::version XOTcl version number.

       ::xotcl::confdir Directory for XOTcl configuration.

       ::xotcl::logdir Directory where logfiles are placed.

KEYWORDS

       argument, interpreter, prompt, script file, shell