Http Client in Squirrel

Here’s an idiomatic Squirrel code example demonstrating an HTTP client, along with an explanation in Markdown format suitable for Hugo:

// Import the required modules
local http = require("http");
local blob = require("blob");

// Main function to execute the HTTP request
function main() {
    // Issue an HTTP GET request to a server
    local request = http.get("https://example.com");

    // Check if the request was successful
    if (request.statuscode == 200) {
        print("Response status: " + request.statuscode + " " + request.reason);

        // Read the response body
        local response = request.sendsync();
        local body = response.body;

        // Convert the body to a string and split into lines
        local bodyString = body.tostring();
        local lines = split(bodyString, "\n");

        // Print the first 5 lines of the response body
        for (local i = 0; i < 5 && i < lines.len(); i++) {
            print(lines[i]);
        }
    } else {
        print("HTTP request failed with status code: " + request.statuscode);
    }
}

// Run the main function
main();

This Squirrel code demonstrates how to make an HTTP GET request and process the response. Here’s a breakdown of the code:

1. We import the required modules: http for making HTTP requests and blob for handling binary data.

2. The main() function encapsulates our HTTP client logic.

3. We use http.get() to issue a GET request to “https://example.com”. This returns a request object.

4. We check the statuscode of the request to ensure it was successful (200 OK).

5. If successful, we print the response status and use sendsync() to send the request and get the response.

6. The response body is converted to a string and split into lines.

7. We then print the first 5 lines of the response body.

8. If the request fails, we print an error message with the status code.

9. Finally, we call the main() function to execute our code.

To run this Squirrel script:

1. Save the code in a file, e.g., http_client.nut.
2. Make sure you have the Squirrel interpreter installed.
3. Run the script using the Squirrel interpreter:

$ sq http_client.nut

This example showcases Squirrel’s capability to perform HTTP requests and handle responses, demonstrating its usefulness in networking applications. Note that Squirrel’s HTTP functionality may vary depending on the specific implementation or environment you’re using, so consult your Squirrel distribution’s documentation for any platform-specific details.