bust — B compiler for x86-64 Linux

bust is a compiler for B, the language that preceded C at Bell Labs. It targets x86-64 Linux and produces ELF binaries.

Usage

bust source.b -o output         # compile & link → executable
bust -S source.b -o output.s    # assembly only
bust -s 'printn(42);'           # one-liner

Options

Option	Description
-o <file>	Output file (default: a.out)
-S	Emit assembly only, do not assemble/link
-s <code>	Compile string instead of file
--libb-path <path>	Path to liblibb.a

Install

cargo xtask install                      # → /usr/local/{bin,lib64}
cargo xtask install --prefix ~/.local    # → ~/.local/{bin,lib64}

cargo xtask uninstall                    # remove from /usr/local
cargo xtask uninstall --prefix ~/.local  # remove from ~/.local

liblibb.a is resolved at runtime in this order: --libb-path → LIBB_PATH env → well-known system paths → compile-time fallback.

Project structure

Path	Description
bust/	Compiler: lexer, parser, codegen
libb/	Runtime: syscall wrappers, I/O, no libc
xtask/	Build & install automation

Example projects

Larger programs written in B using bust can be found here:

• Bad Bapple — Bad Apple!! rendered as ASCII art in B.
• bcube — Rotating ASCII cube in B.

Test

cargo xtask test

References

• BCause — C implementation of the B language that inspired this project.
• blang — Go/LLVM implementation of the B language that inspired this project.
• Users' Reference to B by Ken Thompson (1972)

License

MIT