Special Expression: @no_quote

XmlMan provides a special expression called @no_quote that allows you to assign non-string values (like booleans, integers, or other raw data) to element attributes. Normally, attribute values are wrapped in quotes and interpreted as strings. Using @no_quote tells the transpiler not to quote the value.

How It Works

In XmlMan, XML attributes are normally always quoted, which means values are treated as strings. Sometimes, you want to assign raw values like booleans or numbers (without quotes). The @no_quote expression makes this possible.

XML Example

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

<Root>
    <Window name="Banana">
        <Box>
            <!-- @no_quote(false) ensures this is a boolean, not a string -->
            <Label text="foo" visible="@no_quote(false)"/>
        </Box>
    </Window>
</Root>

Here, visible="@no_quote(false)" assigns a boolean false instead of the string `false`.

Transpiled Rhai Code

When the above XML is transpiled, it produces the following Rhai code:

fn Banana_child() {
    box(#{}, [
      label(#{
        "text": `foo`, // string
        "visible": false // boolean
      })
    ])
}

enter([
    defwindow("Banana", #{  }, Banana_child())
])

Important

If you write @no_quote(val) some_other_val, the engine will still wrap the entire value in quotes. Only the direct use of @no_quote(val) ensures the value remains unquoted.

Caution

When using @no_quote, XmlMan cannot guarantee that the resulting code is valid. Make sure the values you pass are appropriate for the context.