Context in Scilab

Here’s the translation of the Go code to Scilab, along with explanations in Markdown format suitable for Hugo:

In this example, we’ll explore how to handle HTTP requests and use a concept similar to context in Scilab. While Scilab doesn’t have built-in HTTP server capabilities or a direct equivalent to Go’s context, we can simulate similar behavior using Scilab’s features.

// Import necessary modules
exec('httpd.sci', -1);  // Assuming we have a custom HTTP server implementation

// Define the hello function to handle requests
function hello(request)
    disp("server: hello handler started");
    
    // Simulate work being done
    tic();
    while (toc() < 10)
        // Check if the request has been cancelled
        if (request.cancelled)
            disp("server: request cancelled");
            return %f;
        end
        sleep(100);
    end
    
    disp("server: hello handler ended");
    return "hello\n";
endfunction

// Main function to set up and start the server
function main()
    // Register our handler for the "/hello" route
    httpd_register("/hello", hello);
    
    // Start the server
    httpd_serve(8090);
endfunction

// Run the main function
main();

In this Scilab version:

1. We assume the existence of a custom HTTP server implementation (httpd.sci) that provides basic functionality similar to Go’s http package.

2. The hello function simulates handling a request. It waits for 10 seconds before responding, checking periodically if the request has been cancelled.

3. Instead of using a context, we use a simple cancelled flag in the request object to simulate cancellation.

4. The main function sets up the server by registering the handler and starting it on port 8090.

To run this server:

$ scilab -nw -f context.sce

To simulate a client request and cancellation:

$ curl localhost:8090/hello &
$ kill %1

You should see output similar to:

server: hello handler started
server: request cancelled
server: hello handler ended

This example demonstrates how to handle long-running requests and cancellation in Scilab, even though it doesn’t have built-in HTTP server capabilities or a direct equivalent to Go’s context. The concepts of handling requests, simulating work, and responding to cancellation are preserved, adapted to Scilab’s capabilities.