Slang Language Guide
====================

This document will try to describe the main characteristics of the Slang language that might make it different from other shading languages you have used.

The Basics
----------

Slang is similar to HLSL, and it is expected that many HLSL programs can be used as Slang code with no modifications.
Big-picture stuff that is supported:

* A C-style preprocessor
* Ordinary function, `struct`, `typedef`, etc. declarations
* The standard vector/matrix types like `float3` and `float4x4`
* The less-used explicit `vector<T,N>` and `matrix<T,R,C>` types
* `cbuffer` declarations for uniform parameters
* Global-scope declarations of texture/sampler parameters, including with `register` annotations
* Entry points with varying `in`/`out` parameters using semantics (including `SV_*` system-value semantics)
* The built-in templated resource types like `Texture2D<T>` with their object-oriented syntax for sampling operations
* Attributes like `[unroll]` are parsed, and passed along for HLSL/DXBC output, but dropped for other targets
* `struct` types that contain textures/samplers as well as ordinary uniform data, both as function parameters and in constant buffers
* The built-in functions up through Shader Model 6.0 (as documented on MSDN) are supported

New Features
------------

### Import Declarations

In order to support better software modularity, and also to deal with the issue of how to integrate shader libraries written in Slang into other languages, Slang introduces an `import` declaration construct.

The basic idea is that if you write a file `foo.slang` like this:

```hlsl
// foo.slang

float4 someFunc(float4 x) { return x; }
```

you can then import this code into another file in Slang, HLSL, or GLSL:

```hlsl
// bar.slang

import foo;

float4 someOtherFunc(float4 y) { return someFunc(y); }
```

The simplest way to think of it is that the `import foo` declaration instructs the compiler to look for `foo.slang` (in the same search paths it uses for `#include` files), and give an error if it isn't found.
If `foo.slang` is found, then the compiler will go ahead and parse and type-check that file, and make any declarations there visible to the original file (`bar.slang` in this example).

When it comes time to generate output code, Slang will output any declarations from `import`ed files that were actually used (it skips those that are never referenced), and it will cross-compile them as needed for the chosen target.

A few other details worth knowing about `import` declarations:

* The name you use on the `import` line gets translated into a file name with some very simple rules. An underscore (`_`) in the name turns into a dash (`-`) in the file name, and dot separators (`.`) turn into directory separators (`/`). After these substitutions, `.slang` is added to the end of the name.

* If there are multiple `import` declarations naming the same file, it will only be imported once. This is also true for nested imports.

* Currently importing does not imply any kind of namespacing; all global declarations still occupy a single namespace, and collisions between different imported files (or between a file and the code it imports) are possible. This is a bug.

* If file `A.slang` imports `B.slang`, and then some other file does `import A;`, then only the names from `A.slang` are brought into scope, not those from `B.slang`. This behavior can be controlled by having `A.slang` use `__exported import B;` to also re-export the declarations it imports from `B`.

* An import is *not* like a `#include`, and so the file that does the `import` can't see preprocessor macros defined in the imported file (and vice versa). Think of `import foo;` as closer to `using namespace foo;` in C++ (perhaps without the same baggage).

### Explicit Parameter Blocks

One of the most important new features of modern APIs like Direct3D 12 and Vulkan is an interface for providing shader parameters using efficient *parameter blocks* that can be stored in GPU memory (these are implemented as descriptor tables/sets in D3D12/Vulkan, and "attribute buffers" in Metal).
However, HLSL and GLSL don't support explicit syntax for parameter blocks, and so shader programmers are left to manually pack parameters into blocks either using `register`/`layout` modifiers, or with API-based remapping (in the D3D12 case).

Slang supports a simple and explicit syntax for exploiting parameter blocks:

```hlsl
struct ViewParams
{
	float3 cameraPos;
	float4x4 viewProj;
	TextureCube envMap;
};

ParameterBlock<ViewParams> gViewParams;
```

In this example, the fields of `gViewParams` will be assigned to registers/bindings in a way that supports allocating them into a single parameter block.
For example, when generating GLSL for Vulkan, the Slang compiler will generate a single `uniform` block (for `cameraPos` and `viewProj`) and a global `textureCube` for `envMap`, both decorated with the same `layout(set = ...)`.


### Interfaces

Slang supports declaring `interface`s that user-defined `struct` types can implement.
For example, here is a simple interface for light sources:

```hlsl
// light.slang

struct LightSample { float3 intensity; float3 direction; };

interface ILight
{
	LightSample sample(float3 position);
}
```

We can now define a simple user type that "conforms to" (implements) the `ILight` interface:

```hlsl
// point-light.slang

import light;

struct PointLight : ILight
{
	float3 position;
	float3 intensity;

	LightSample sample(float3 hitPos)
	{
		float3 delta = hitPos - position;
		float distance = length(delta);

		LightSample sample;
		sample.direction = delta / distance;
		sample.intensity = intensity * falloff(distance);
		return sample;
	}
}
```

### Generics

Slang supports *generic* declarations, using the common angle-bracket (`<>`) syntax from languages like C#, Java, etc.
For example, here is a generic function that works with any type of light:

```hlsl
// diffuse.slang
import light;

float4 computeDiffuse<L : ILight>( float4 albedo, float3 P, float3 N, L light )
{
	LightSample sample = light.sample(P);
	float nDotL = max(0, dot(N, sample.direction));
	return albedo * nDotL;
}
```

The `computeDiffuse` function works with any type `L` that implements the `ILight` interface.
Unlike with C++ templates, the `computeDiffuse` function can be compiled and type-checked once (you won't suddenly get unexpected error messages when plugging in a new type).

#### Global-Scope Generic Parameters

Putting generic parameter directly on functions is helpful, but in many cases existing HLSL shaders declare their parameters at global scope.
For example, we might have a shader that uses a global declaration of material parameters:

```hlsl
Material gMaterial;
```

In order to allow such a shader to be converted to use a generic parameter for the material type (to allow for specialization), Slang supports declaring type parameters at the global scope:

```hlsl
type_param M : IMaterial;
M gMaterial;
```

Conceptually, you can think of this syntax as wrapping your entire shader program in a generic with parameter `<M : IMaterial>`.
This isn't beautiful syntax, but it may help when incrementally porting an existing HLSL codebase to use Slang's features.

A global-scope generic parameter must be given a concrete argument before the program can be compiled to a target — for example by passing `-specialize <typename>` (after the corresponding `-entry <name>`) on the command line, or programmatically through `IComponentType::specialize`.
Using such a parameter directly in shader code that is then compiled without a binding is an error (`E38207`); these declarations are intended for reflection and external specialization, not for direct use in an unspecialized shader body.

### Associated Types

Sometimes it is difficult to define an interface because each type that implements it might need to make its own choice about some intermediate type.
As a concrete example, suppose we want to define an interface `IMaterial` for material surface shaders, where each material might use its own BRDF.
We want to support evaluating the *pattern* of the surface separate from the reflectance function.

```hlsl
// A reflectance function
interface IBRDF
{
	float3 eval(float3 wi, float3 wo);
}
struct DisneyBRDF : IBRDF { ... };
struct KajiyaKay : IBRDF { ... };

// a surface pattern
interface IMaterial
{
	??? evalPattern(float3 position, float2 uv);
}
```

What is the type `???` that `evalPattern` should return? We know that it needs to be a type that supports `IBRDF`, but *which* type?
One material might want to use `DisneyBRDF` while another wants to use `KajiyaKay`.

The solution in Slang, as in modern languages like Swift and Rust, is to use *associated types* to express the dependence of the BRDF type on the material type:

```hlsl
interface IMaterial
{
	associatedtype B : IBRDF;
	B evalPattern(float3 position, float2 uv);
}

struct MyCoolMaterial : IMaterial
{
	typedef DisneyBRDF B;
	B evalPattern(float3 position, float2 uv)
	{ ... }
}
```

Associated types are an advanced concept, and we only recommend using them when they are needed to define a usable interface.


Future Extensions
-----------------

### Implicit Generics Syntax

The syntax for generics and interfaces in Slang is currently explicit, but verbose:

```hlsl
float4 computeDiffuse<L : ILight>( L light, ... )
{ ... }
```

As a future change, we would like to allow using an interface like `ILight` as an ordinary parameter type:

```hlsl
float4 computeDiffuse( ILight light, ... )
{ ... }
```

This simpler syntax would act like "syntactic sugar" for the existing explicit generics syntax, so it would retain all of the important performance properties.

### Returning a Value of Interface Type

While the above dealt with using an interface as a parameter type, we would eventually like to support using an interface as the *return* type of a function:

```hlsl
ILight getALightSource(Scene scene) { ... }
```

Implementing this case efficiently is more challenging. In most cases, an associated type can be used instead when an interface return type would be desired.


Not Supported
-------------

Some features of the current HLSL language are not supported, but probably will be given enough time/resources:

* Local variables of texture/sampler type (or that contain these)
* Explicit `packoffset` annotations on members of `cbuffer`s

Some things from HLSL are *not* planned to be supported, unless there is significant outcry from users:

* Pre-D3D10 and D3D11 syntax and operations
* The "effect" system, and the related `<>` annotation syntax
* Explicit `register` bindings on textures/samplers nested in `cbuffer`s
* Any further work towards making HLSL a subset of C++ (simply because implementing a full C++ compiler is way out of scope for the Slang project)
