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Gecko: a fast GLR parser with automatic syntax error recovery

Gecko is a new standalone GLR parser library written in C that handles any context-free grammar with automatic syntax error recovery, without requiring grammar modifications. It achieves performance competitive with traditional YACC parsers on unambiguous grammars while offering greater flexibility. The project builds on the author's decades of experience developing parser generators and addresses limitations of existing tools.

Background

Parser generators like YACC and Bison have long been standard tools for language implementation, but they impose grammar restrictions and lack robust error recovery. Generalized parsers that handle ambiguous grammars have historically been considered too slow for practical use.

Source
Lobsters
Published
Apr 23, 2026 at 02:18 PM
Score
7.0 / 10