racket/collects/scribblings/guide/apply.scrbl
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Racket

#reader(lib "docreader.ss" "scribble")
@require[(lib "manual.ss" "scribble")]
@require[(lib "eval.ss" "scribble")]
@require["guide-utils.ss"]
@title[#:tag "guide:application"]{Procedure Applications}
An expression of the form
@specsubform[
(_proc-expr _arg-expr ...)
]
is a procedure application when @scheme[_proc-expr] is not an
identifier that is bound as a transformer.
@section{Evaluation Order and Arity}
A procedure application is evaluated by first evaluating the
@scheme[_proc-expr] and all @scheme[_arg-expr]s in order (left to
right). Then, if @scheme[_proc-expr] produced a procedure that accepts
as many arguments as supplied @scheme[_arg-expr]s, the procedure is
applied. Otherwise, an exception is raised.
@examples[
(cons 1 null)
(+ 1 2 3)
(cons 1 2 3)
(1 2 3)
]
Some procedures, such as @scheme[cons], accept a fixed number of
arguments. Some procedures, such as @scheme[list], accept any number
of arguments. Some procedures accept a range of argument counts; for
example @scheme[substring] accepts either two or three arguments. A
procedure's @idefterm{arity} is the number(s) of arguments that it
accepts.
@;------------------------------------------------------------------------
@section[#:tag "guide:keyword-args"]{Keyword Arguments}
Some procedures accept @defterm{keyword arguments} in addition to
by-position arguments. For that case, an @scheme[_arg] can be an
@scheme[_arg-keyword _arg-expr] sequence instead of just a
@scheme[_arg-expr]:
@margin-note{For an introduction to keywords, see @secref["guide:keywords"].}
@specform/subs[
(_proc-expr _arg ...)
([arg arg-expr
(code:line arg-keyword arg-expr)])
]
For example,
@schemeblock[(go "super.ss" #:mode 'fast)]
calls the procedure bound to @scheme[go] with @scheme["super.ss"] as a
by-position argument, and with @scheme['fast] as an argument
associated with the @scheme[#:mode] keyword. A keyword is implicitly
paired with the expression that follows it.
Since a keyword by itself is not an expression, then
@schemeblock[(go "super.ss" #:mode #:fast)]
is a syntax error. The @scheme[#:mode] keyword must be followed by an
expression to produce an argument value, and @scheme[#:fast] is not an
expression.
The order of keyword @scheme[_arg]s determines the order in which
@scheme[_arg-expr]s are evaluated, but a procedure accepts keyword
arguments independent of their position in the argument list. The
above call to @scheme[go] can be equivalently written
@schemeblock[(go #:mode 'fast "super.ss")]
@refdetails["mz:application"]{procedure applications}
@;------------------------------------------------------------------------
@section[#:tag "guide:apply"]{The @scheme[apply] Procedure}
The syntax for procedure applications supports any number of
arguments, but a specific application expression always specifies a
fixed number of arguments. As a result, a procedure that takes a list
of arguments cannot directly apply a procedure like @scheme[+] to all
of the items in the list:
@def+int[
(define (avg lst) (code:comment #, @elem{doesn't work...})
(/ (+ lst) (length lst)))
(avg '(1 2 3))
]
@def+int[
(define (avg lst) (code:comment #, @elem{doesn't always work...})
(/ (+ (list-ref lst 0) (list-ref lst 1) (list-ref lst 2))
(length lst)))
(avg '(1 2 3))
(avg '(1 2))
]
The @scheme[apply] procedure offers a way around this restriction. It
takes a procedure and a @italic{list} arguments, and it applies the
procedure to the arguments:
@def+int[
(define (avg lst)
(/ (apply + lst) (length lst)))
(avg '(1 2 3))
(avg '(1 2))
(avg '(1 2 3 4))
]
As a convenience, the @scheme[apply] procedure accepts additional
arguments between the procedure and the list. The additional arguments
are effectively @scheme[cons]ed onto the argument list:
@def+int[
(define (anti-sum lst)
(apply - 0 lst))
(anti-sum '(1 2 3))
]
The @scheme[apply] procedure supports only by-position arguments. To
apply a procedure with keyword arguments, use the
@scheme[keyword-apply] procedure, which accepts a procedure to apply
and two lists. The first list contains pairs, each matching a
keyword with its corresponding value. The second list contains
by-position procedure arguments, as for @scheme[apply].
@schemeblock[
(keyword-apply go
(list (cons '#:mode 'fast))
(list "super.ss"))
]