prototype, /n/: a first, typical or preliminary model of something, especially a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied.
eval-proto is an emacs package which aims to help speed up prototyping through micro-development.
Suppose you're working on a large project. I frequently find that developing within the large project itself is difficult and error-prone, especially when I need to quickly try out ideas in an unfamiliar language. To do this I typically prototype on a small scale in a temporary directory and execute the file as I edit, but that requires me to switch contexts outside of emacs. This is less than ideal.
Enter eval-proto. eval-proto allows you to run whatever code you want in your favorite scripting language and prints the output immediately in your minibuffer. This makes it easy to quickly prototype your ideas, right within emacs. How cool is that?
All you have to do is bind a key to eval-proto/eval. eval-proto will
automatically pick up the shebang from your buffer and run the command you
specify, piping in the file as input to the command. You don't even have to save
the buffer!
GIF coming soon...