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Tag-Oriented Programming (TOP)™

• A syntax-first orientation for programming
• Strong focus on contracts and verifiability

$$ \color{gold} \text{ Compose semantic layers on one stable object identity. } $$

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Top is:

• clear before clever
• readable before dense
• explicit before magical
• semantically strong before syntactically fancy
• orthogonal before tangled
• contract-aware, with real obligations
• practical

TOP is a programming paradigm: a Target keeps its identity while Tags add meaning, roles, and capabilities, that cut across ordinary class hierarchies.

Where traditional code asks "what is this object?", TOP asks "what is this object for, here?", and lets the answer grow and evolve as the program develops.

A core inspiration is tabletop character creation. There, species, class, background and feats are independent choices, and the character sheet is what they compose.

flowchart TD
    subgraph Character_Object
      ari["Ari"]
      name(["Name"])
      rng(["RNG"])
      end
    name ---o ari
    rng ---o ari

    subgraph Elf_Tag
      elf{{"Elf"}}
      magic(["Elven Magic"])
      elven(["Elven Language"])
      end

    ari <--- elf
    elf --- magic
    elf === elven
    ari o--- magic
    

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Another, completely independent, source for the model of TOP is the structural organization of Information Sensible Agencies. Banks, FBI, MI6... these organization need a clear control of the flux of information, organization of tasks, and permissions and classification of their assets. Many design patterns exist to provide the level of security, scalability, and control these organization need. TOP was designed not for these organizations, but as these organization. Not adapted, but built on these standards.

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Index

Prefix	What
0.	The paradigm: the canon
0.a	Archive: frozen original texts, verbatim
0.s	The current Specification text, under review
1.	TopKit for Python, prescriptive
1.3	Presence: a name at an Agent
1.i	TopKit implementation (not normative)
2.	for Ada
3.	for Java
{n}	one chapter per language Desk
x	Examples
p	Process: how the project works
r	Records: drift register, open questions, reviews, sources