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Lua is very easy to build and install. There are detailed instructions in the package but here is a simple terminal session that downloads the current release of Lua and builds it in common …

Jul 1, 2025 · Here is a chronology of the versions of Lua. The evolution of Lua is documented in a paper presented at HOPL III, the Third ACM SIGPLAN History of Programming Languages …

4.3.1 – if then else An if statement tests its condition and executes its then-part or its else-part accordingly. The else-part is optional. if a<0 then a = 0 end if a<b then return a else return b …

A useful Lua idiom is x = x or v, which is equivalent to if not x then x = v end i.e., it sets x to a default value v when x is not set (provided that x is not set to false). Another useful idiom is (a …

Lua 5.3 Reference Manual The reference manual is the official definition of the Lua language. For a complete introduction to Lua programming, see the book Programming in Lua.

The official definition of the Lua language is its reference manual, which describes the syntax and the semantics of Lua, the standard libraries, and the C API.

Feb 11, 2024 · To see how Lua programs compile to instructions for the Lua virtual machine, visit Lua Bytecode Explorer

Functions are the main mechanism for abstraction of statements and expressions in Lua. Functions can both carry out a specific task (what is sometimes called procedure or subroutine …

Apr 10, 2024 · The official definition of the Lua language is its reference manual, which describes the syntax and the semantics of Lua, the standard libraries, and the C API.