From 0b4cdf7b28b3855d2dee18d91e9319d66a8ec25f Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: _ov4 <ov4@ov4.org>
Date: Sun, 26 Jul 2026 11:15:57 +0000
Subject: docs: add AGENTS/ architecture docs for AI-assisted development

ARCH.md holds the overview (pipeline, build/run, layout); details are
split into CONVENTIONS.md, EXTENDING.md, SUBSYSTEMS.md and PITFALLS.md.
All claims were verified against the source, most also empirically by
compiling and running test programs.

Co-Authored-By: Claude Fable 5 <noreply@anthropic.com>
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 AGENTS/ARCH.md | 66 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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+# Architecture
+
+`cpsc` compiles CIE A-Level 9618 pseudocode to LLVM IR. Classic three-stage
+Kaleidoscope-style design, C++17, no external deps beyond LLVM 18 and libc.
+
+```
+stdin ──> Lexer ──> Parser ──> vector<unique_ptr<StmtAST>> ──> CodeGen ──> textual LLVM IR on stderr
+        (getchar)  (recursive       (flat program list;         (one llvm::Module "cps_module",
+                    descent)         FunctionDefAST mixed in)    everything else inside i32 main())
+```
+
+Fixed value representation (ABI — much code infers types backwards from these):
+INTEGER = `i64`, REAL = `double`, BOOLEAN = `i1`, CHAR = `i8`, STRING = opaque `ptr`
+to a NUL-terminated buffer.
+
+## Build & run
+
+The compiler stops at textual IR. Making a runnable binary is manual:
+
+```bash
+mkdir -p build && cd build && cmake -DLLVM_DIR=/usr/lib/llvm-18/cmake .. && make   # build cpsc
+./cpsc < prog.cps 2> prog.ll     # stdin is the ONLY input; IR goes to STDERR
+clang-18 prog.ll -o prog && ./prog
+```
+
+Three facts about the driver (`tools/driver/main.cc`, 17 lines) that break naive automation:
+
+- **No argv.** `./cpsc file.cps` blocks forever on stdin; you must redirect `<`.
+- **IR and error messages share stderr.** A failed parse still dumps (partial) IR,
+  prefixed by `Error:` lines that make clang reject the file.
+- **Exit code is always 0**, even on errors. Grepping stderr for `Error:` catches most
+  failures but has false negatives: some parse paths return nullptr without printing
+  anything (an identifier statement not followed by `<-`/`[`, an unrecognized statement
+  token), the keyword builtins' arity checks print without the `Error:` prefix
+  (`LENGTH expects 1 arg`), and the identifier-route builtins
+  (ASC/CHR/IS_NUM/NUM_TO_STR/STR_TO_NUM) fail arity checks silently. Those statements
+  just vanish from otherwise-valid IR. The only reliable check is running the program
+  and diffing its output.
+
+Build pin: **LLVM 18 only.** LLVM 19 breaks compilation (`ArithmeticHandler.cc` uses
+`llvm::Module` methods relying on LLVM 18's transitive `#include`; fix would be adding
+`llvm/IR/Module.h`).
+
+## Layout
+
+| Path | Contents |
+|---|---|
+| `include/cps/` | All headers, included as `"cps/Foo.h"` |
+| `lib/Lexer/Lexer.cc` | Entire lexer: one function, `Lexer::gettok()` |
+| `lib/Parser/Parser.cc` | Statements, expressions, precedence table |
+| `lib/Parser/ParserFunction.cc` | FUNCTION/PROCEDURE/CALL/RETURN parsing |
+| `lib/CodeGen/CodeGen.cc` | Hub: dispatch, coercion, control flow, INPUT/OUTPUT, main() |
+| `lib/CodeGen/*Handler.cc`, `FunctionGen.cc`, `RuntimeCheck.cc`, `TypeSystem.cc` | Helpers owned by CodeGen |
+| `CMakeLists.txt` | 3 static libs (CPSLexer, CPSParser, CPSCodeGen) + `cpsc`. **New .cc files must be added to the source lists here** |
+
+AST nodes live in `include/cps/AST.h` (+ `FunctionAST.h`); they are pure data with
+virtual destructors only — no codegen/visitor methods.
+
+## Detail docs
+
+| File | Read it when |
+|---|---|
+| `AGENTS/CONVENTIONS.md` | Before writing any code — cross-module invariants whose violation breaks code you didn't touch |
+| `AGENTS/EXTENDING.md` | Adding a statement, builtin, operator, type, runtime check, or libc dependency — exact recipes |
+| `AGENTS/SUBSYSTEMS.md` | Working on arrays, functions/procedures, or runtime checks |
+| `AGENTS/PITFALLS.md` | Verified sharp edges (they *will* bite) and the list of unimplemented 9618 features |
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