Here are some example uses of ML Basis files.
Complete program
Suppose your complete program consists of the files file1.sml, …, filen.sml, which depend upon libraries lib1.mlb, …, libm.mlb.
(* import libraries *) lib1.mlb ... libm.mlb (* program files *) file1.sml ... filen.sml
The bases denoted by lib1.mlb, …, libm.mlb are merged (bindings of names in later bases take precedence over bindings of the same name in earlier bases), producing a basis in which file1.sml, …, filen.sml are elaborated, adding additional bindings to the basis.
Export filter
Suppose you only want to export certain structures, signatures, and functors from a collection of files.
local file1.sml ... filen.sml in (* export filter here *) functor F structure S end
While file1.sml, …, filen.sml may declare top-level identifiers in addition to F and S, such names are not accessible to programs and libraries that import this .mlb.
Export filter with renaming
Suppose you want an export filter, but want to rename one of the modules.
local file1.sml ... filen.sml in (* export filter, with renaming, here *) functor F structure S' = S end
Note that functor F is an abbreviation for functor F = F, which simply exports an identifier under the same name.
Import filter
Suppose you only want to import a functor F from one library and a structure S from another library.
local lib1.mlb in (* import filter here *) functor F end local lib2.mlb in (* import filter here *) structure S end file1.sml ... filen.sml
Import filter with renaming
Suppose you want to import a structure S from one library and another structure S from another library.
local lib1.mlb in (* import filter, with renaming, here *) structure S1 = S end local lib2.mlb in (* import filter, with renaming, here *) structure S2 = S end file1.sml ... filen.sml
Full Basis
Since the Modules level of SML is the natural means for organizing program and library components, MLB files provide convenient syntax for renaming Modules level identifiers (in fact, renaming of functor identifiers provides a mechanism that is not available in SML). However, please note that .mlb files elaborate to full bases including top-level types and values (including infix status), in addition to structures, signatures, and functors. For example, suppose you wished to extend the Basis Library with an ('a, 'b) either datatype corresponding to a disjoint sum; the type and some operations should be available at the top-level; additionally, a signature and structure provide the complete interface.
We could use the following files.
either-sigs.sml
signature EITHER_GLOBAL =
sig
datatype ('a, 'b) either = Left of 'a | Right of 'b
val & : ('a -> 'c) * ('b -> 'c) -> ('a, 'b) either -> 'c
val && : ('a -> 'c) * ('b -> 'd) -> ('a, 'b) either -> ('c, 'd) either
end
signature EITHER =
sig
include EITHER_GLOBAL
val isLeft : ('a, 'b) either -> bool
val isRight : ('a, 'b) either -> bool
...
end
either-strs.sml
structure Either : EITHER =
struct
datatype ('a, 'b) either = Left of 'a | Right of 'b
fun f & g = fn x =>
case x of Left z => f z | Right z => g z
fun f && g = (Left o f) & (Right o g)
fun isLeft x = ((fn _ => true) & (fn _ => false)) x
fun isRight x = (not o isLeft) x
...
end
structure EitherGlobal : EITHER_GLOBAL = Either
either-infixes.sml
infixr 3 & &&
either-open.sml
open EitherGlobal
either.mlb
either-infixes.sml local (* import Basis Library *) $(SML_LIB)/basis/basis.mlb either-sigs.sml either-strs.sml in signature EITHER structure Either either-open.sml end
A client that imports either.mlb will have access to neither EITHER_GLOBAL nor EitherGlobal, but will have access to the type either and the values & and && (with infix status) in the top-level environment. Note that either-infixes.sml is outside the scope of the local, because we want the infixes available in the implementation of the library and to clients of the library.