zig-comptime

Zig comptime

Purpose

Guide agents through Zig's comptime system: compile-time function evaluation, comptime type parameters, generics via anytype, type reflection with @typeInfo, and metaprogramming patterns that replace C++ templates and macros.

Triggers

• "How does comptime work in Zig?"
• "How do I write a generic function in Zig?"
• "How do I use @typeInfo for reflection?"
• "How do I generate code at compile time in Zig?"
• "How does anytype work in Zig?"
• "How do Zig generics compare to C++ templates?"

Workflow

1. comptime basics

// comptime keyword forces compile-time evaluation
const x: comptime_int = 42;         // comptime integer (arbitrary precision)
const y: comptime_float = 3.14159;  // comptime float (arbitrary precision)

// comptime block — runs at compile time
comptime {
    const val = fibonacci(20);       // computed at compile time
    std.debug.assert(val == 6765);   // compile-time assertion
}

// comptime parameter — caller must provide a comptime-known value
fn makeArray(comptime T: type, comptime n: usize) [n]T {
    return [_]T{0} ** n;             // array of n zeros of type T
}

const arr = makeArray(f32, 8);      // [8]f32 computed at compile time

2. Generic functions with comptime type parameters

const std = @import("std");

// Generic max function — T must be comptime-known
fn max(comptime T: type, a: T, b: T) T {
    return if (a > b) a else b;
}

// Usage: T is inferred from arguments or specified explicitly
const r1 = max(i32, 3, 7);          // 7
const r2 = max(f64, 2.5, 1.8);     // 2.5

// Generic Stack data structure
fn Stack(comptime T: type) type {
    return struct {
        items: []T,
        top: usize,
        allocator: std.mem.Allocator,

        const Self = @This();

        pub fn init(allocator: std.mem.Allocator) !Self {
            return Self{
                .items = try allocator.alloc(T, 64),
                .top = 0,
                .allocator = allocator,
            };
        }

        pub fn push(self: *Self, value: T) void {
            self.items[self.top] = value;
            self.top += 1;
        }

        pub fn pop(self: *Self) ?T {
            if (self.top == 0) return null;
            self.top -= 1;
            return self.items[self.top];
        }

        pub fn deinit(self: *Self) void {
            self.allocator.free(self.items);
        }
    };
}

// Usage: Stack(i32) and Stack(f64) are distinct types
var int_stack = try Stack(i32).init(allocator);
defer int_stack.deinit();
int_stack.push(42);