YAML.sh v1.3.0 — tiny YAML programming

YAML.sh remains one portable /bin/sh + AWK file, now with a substantially richer yq-shaped language and safer edits.

Highlights

• Map, entries, variables, dynamic indexes, reduce, sorting, string helpers, and deep merge
• Broader YAML syntax, Unicode escapes, multiline flow collections, and explicit block-scalar indentation
• Multi-document in-place transforms
• Presentation-preserving scalar updates with atomic replacement
• 64 behavioral tests across macOS, Ubuntu, and BusyBox AWK
• A strict SemVer policy: compatible capability work stays in v1.x

The same compatible code was briefly labeled v2.0.0. v1.3.0 is the canonical release because no v1 public contract was broken.

YAML.sh v1.2.0 — the tiny parser writes back

Version 1.2 turns YAML.sh from a read-only query engine into a writable YAML transformer—still one portable /bin/sh + AWK file.

Highlights:

• recursive descent (..) and optional traversal (?)
• array and object construction plus null input (-n)
• arithmetic, string/sequence concatenation, and shallow mapping +
• assignment (=), relative update (|=), compound updates, missing-path creation, and del(...)
• semantic YAML output with -y / -o=yaml
• permission-preserving in-place updates with -i
• multi-document in-place safety: reject before replacement instead of dropping documents
• 57 behavioral tests across macOS, Ubuntu, BusyBox AWK, and POSIX shell
• 18 representative v1.2 expressions matched yq v4.53.3 byte-for-byte in JSON mode

The honest bit: YAML output preserves semantic structure, not comments or presentation style. Variables, reducers, dynamic keys, deep merge, style/comment operators, file operators, and non-YAML codecs remain outside this tiny, mischievous subset.

Docs: https://yaml.azohra.com/docs/#/queries

YAML.sh v1.1.0 — now the nodes can flow

Version 1.1 adds a focused, read-only yq-style expression engine over the YAML.sh node graph.

Highlights:

• sequence and mapping iteration with []
• pipes and multi-result node streams
• select filters with comparisons and booleans
• // defaults for missing, null, and false values
• length, keys, has, kind, and yq-compatible type
• 47 behavioral tests across macOS, Ubuntu, BusyBox AWK, and POSIX shell
• 25 representative expressions matched yq v4.53.3 exactly in JSON mode

Expressions remain read-only in v1.1. Mutation and YAML emission are next.

Docs: https://yaml.azohra.com/docs/#/queries

YAML.sh v1.0.0 — yq energy, zero baggage

YAML.sh v1 is an intentionally breaking, ground-up rebuild: one portable /bin/sh script with an embedded AWK parser and a yq-style query language.

Highlights:

• real mapping, sequence, scalar, and alias node graph
• direct paths, JSON collection output, types, tags, source lines, AST, and events
• anchors, aliases, merge keys, directives, explicit scalar keys, and multiple documents
• tested on macOS AWK, Ubuntu AWK, BusyBox AWK, and POSIX shell syntax
• rebuilt website, docs, installer, and an honest support contract

Start: https://yaml.azohra.com/docs/#/getting-started
YAML support: https://yaml.azohra.com/docs/#/supported_yml
Migration guide: https://yaml.azohra.com/docs/#/migration

The standalone ysh script is attached below.

v0.4.0

Added

• Backward scalar, mapping, and sequence anchors and aliases with document scoping and recursion checks.
• Mapping merge keys from aliases, inline alias lists, and flow mappings with YAML merge precedence.
• %YAML and %TAG directives, scalar tag syntax, and explicit scalar mapping keys.
• --type inspection for core scalar types while preserving text output.
• An advanced conformance fixture plus explicit rejection tests for every documented boundary.

Fixed

• Reject undefined, forward, recursive, and non-mapping merge aliases with actionable errors.
• Reject duplicate keys and ambiguous flattened query paths instead of returning competing values.
• Reject unknown directives, collection-valued complex keys, block merge lists, and multiline flow collections instead of misparsing them.

Changed

• Buffer parser records so merge precedence and explicit overrides are deterministic.
• Replace the blanket feature disclaimer with a tested support contract and precise intentional limitations.
• Update GitHub Actions checkout to v7 and bound CI jobs to ten minutes.

v0.3.0

Added

• Nested flow mappings and flow lists.
• Literal and folded multiline scalar values.
• Indentationless block lists.
• Source line lookup with --line.
• Tests for every previously open issue, CRLF input, quoted values, comments, malformed YAML, and indexes above 9.
• GitHub Actions coverage on Ubuntu and macOS.

Fixed

• Preserve and decode quotes, backslashes, tabs, and newlines in scalar values.
• Treat query paths literally instead of as regular expressions.
• Count and read lists with multi-digit indexes.
• Reject malformed YAML instead of silently dropping the parser validation rules during the build.
• Report missing CLI arguments and unsafe unquoted transpiled input clearly.
• Update the installer and documentation to the current release.

Changed

• The standalone build now embeds the readable AWK parser without the lossy minification step.
• -T is documented as accepting one quoted intermediate-data argument.
• The default GitHub branch and all three Cloudflare Pages production branches are now main.

v0.2.1

Bug Fixes:

• the -f flag now errors correctly when passed a file path that does not exist.
• the -h flag does not return an error

v0.2.0

Improvements to query language.

v0.1.5

v0.1.5 - make install can now be directed to support brew

v0.1.4

v0.1.4 - Now supports stdin as default input method