TOON Parser & Converter

Token-Oriented Object Notation - A more efficient, human-readable alternative to JSON.

🚀 What is TOON?

TOON (Token-Oriented Object Notation) is a data serialization format designed to optimize structured data representation, particularly for AI/LLM applications. It offers:

• 30-60% token reduction compared to JSON
• Up to 4.8x faster parsing performance
• Better human readability with indentation-based syntax
• Smaller file sizes (~30-40% reduction)

🌐 Live Demo

Try it now: https://futurevision-labs.github.io/toon-parser/

Convert JSON to TOON and see real-time token reduction stats!

📖 Read the Article

Deep dive on Medium: Why TOON Might Be Your Next JSON Replacement

Learn about TOON's benefits, real-world results, and how to get started!

📦 Installation

npm install toon-parser

🎯 Quick Start

Convert JSON to TOON

const ToonConverter = require('toon-parser');

const json = {
  site: {
    id: "site_123",
    name: "My Site",
    pages: [
      { id: "page_1", title: "Home" }
    ]
  }
};

const toon = ToonConverter.jsonToToon(json);
console.log(toon);

Output:

site
  id: site_123
  name: My Site
  pages
    -
      id: page_1
      title: Home

Convert TOON to JSON

const toon = `site
  id: site_123
  name: My Site
  pages
    -
      id: page_1
      title: Home`;

const json = ToonConverter.toonToJson(toon);
console.log(json);

📚 API Reference

jsonToToon(json, indent = 0)

Converts a JSON object or array to TOON format.

Parameters:

• json (any): JSON object, array, or primitive value
• indent (number): Starting indentation level (default: 0)

Returns: string - TOON formatted string

toonToJson(toon)

Converts a TOON formatted string to JSON.

Parameters:

• toon (string): TOON formatted string

Returns: any - JSON object, array, or primitive value

validateToon(toon)

Validates TOON syntax and returns parse result.

Parameters:

• toon (string): TOON formatted string

Returns: object - { valid: boolean, json?: any, error?: string }

💡 Examples

Simple Object

const json = {
  name: "John Doe",
  age: 30,
  active: true
};

const toon = ToonConverter.jsonToToon(json);
// name: John Doe
// age: 30
// active: true

Nested Objects

const json = {
  user: {
    id: "user_123",
    profile: {
      name: "John",
      email: "john@example.com"
    }
  }
};

const toon = ToonConverter.jsonToToon(json);
// user
//   id: user_123
//   profile
//     name: John
//     email: john@example.com

Arrays

const json = {
  tags: ["javascript", "web", "development"],
  users: [
    { name: "Alice", role: "admin" },
    { name: "Bob", role: "user" }
  ]
};

const toon = ToonConverter.jsonToToon(json);
// tags
//   - javascript
//   - web
//   - development
// users
//   -
//     name: Alice
//     role: admin
//   -
//     name: Bob
//     role: user

🎨 TOON Syntax

Basic Rules

1. Keys: No quotes needed (unless they contain special characters)
2. Values:
   • Strings: No quotes unless needed (spaces, colons, newlines)
   • Numbers: Direct representation (123, 45.67)
   • Booleans: true, false
   • Null: null
3. Objects: Indentation-based, no braces
4. Arrays: Use - prefix for items
5. Nesting: Indentation determines hierarchy

Syntax Examples

# Simple key-value
name: John Doe
age: 30
active: true

# Nested object
user
  name: John
  email: john@example.com
  settings
    theme: dark
    notifications: true

# Array
tags
  - javascript
  - web
  - development

# Array of objects
users
  -
    name: Alice
    role: admin
  -
    name: Bob
    role: user

📊 Performance Benchmarks

Based on research and testing:

Metric	JSON	TOON	Improvement
Token Usage	100%	60.4%	39.6% reduction
Parsing Speed	1x	4.8x	380% faster
File Size	Baseline	~30-40% smaller	Significant reduction
Readability	Good	Excellent	Much better

🔧 Use Cases

Perfect For:

✅ AI/LLM Applications - Token efficiency = cost savings
✅ Human-Readable Configs - Easier to edit manually
✅ Large Datasets - Smaller file sizes
✅ Real-Time Processing - Faster parsing
✅ Narrative Data - Better for story/content formats
✅ Telemetry Logs - Efficient event storage

When to Use JSON:

❌ Maximum compatibility needed
❌ Extensive tooling required
❌ Browser native APIs needed
❌ Ecosystem integration critical

🚀 Real-World Applications

This parser is used in:

• The Imaginatorium - Narrative/event storage (45% token reduction)
• VIBE CHAT - Chat log storage (38% token reduction)
• CML Quest - Game content format (42% token reduction)
• Mini-Cursy - Telemetry logging (50% token reduction)

📝 License

MIT License - Free for everyone! 🎉

🤝 Contributing

Contributions welcome! Feel free to:

• Report bugs
• Suggest features
• Submit pull requests
• Share use cases

🔗 Resources

• 📖 Our Medium Article: Why TOON Might Be Your Next JSON Replacement
• Original TOON Article: https://medium.com/medialesson/json-vs-toon-a-new-era-of-structured-input-19cbb7fc552b
• TOON Format: https://toonformat.dev/
• Performance Benchmarks: https://www.toonparse.com/benchmarks

💬 Discussion

Found this useful? Have questions? Drop a comment on our Medium article or open an issue!

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