Build an interactive, self-guided tutorial that explains the WebAssembly Component Model ABI (with emphasis on canonical ABI, lifting/lowering) while being extremely aware of Morphir IR.
We will use the learning to evaluate:
- Mapping Morphir IR programs and types to WebAssembly (core Wasm level).
- Whether Morphir IR could serve as a practical replacement for WIT to achieve similar interaction patterns with core Wasm (imports/exports, type-safe boundaries), using Morphir IR concepts instead of WIT.
- Where gaps prevent this substitution (semantic/ABI/tooling mismatches).
- How Morphir could be enhanced to support this use case (IR extensions, conventions, tooling, validation).
We will proceed module-by-module, and only advance when Damian explicitly says to move on or we both feel confident the current module is understood.
Modules will progressively cover:
- Core Wasm boundary constraints (i32/i64/f32/f64, linear memory)
- Canonical ABI: lifting and lowering
- Scalars (bool/int/float)
- Strings and byte sequences (ptr/len, encoding)
- Lists, records/structs, tuples
- Variants/enums, option/result
- Functions, multi-arg/multi-return, flattening rules
- Resources/handles (ownership, borrowing patterns)
- Error handling and traps vs typed errors
- Versioning and evolution patterns
- Performance considerations (copies, allocations, alignment)
Every module must include:
- A parallel view in Morphir IR terms (types, values, modules, functions).
- Concrete examples that include Morphir IR representation, not just WIT.
- A mapping discussion: Morphir IR -> canonical ABI representation -> core Wasm signature
- memory layout.
- A “WIT replacement check” section:
- Which WIT feature is being approximated
- What Morphir IR already supports
- What is missing (gaps)
- Candidate enhancements to Morphir IR and/or Morphir toolchain
Each module should include:
- A short conceptual explanation (no rushing).
- Visual diagrams (ASCII is fine) showing lifting/lowering paths.
- Code snippets in:
- F#
- Scala
- Go
- A Morphir IR example (types + a small function/value).
- A boundary-level view:
- core Wasm function signature
- memory layout (ptr/len, field layout, tags)
- A “confidence check” with questions Damian answers before proceeding.
- Can Morphir IR act as an IDL/interface definition layer analogous to WIT?
- Can we systematically derive canonical ABI lowering/lifting rules from Morphir IR types?
- What semantics does WIT/component model have that Morphir IR lacks (e.g. resources, ownership/borrowing, explicit world/import/export structure, stability/versioning rules)?
- What additions would make Morphir IR more suitable (annotations, effect/IO boundaries, representation/ABI metadata, canonicalization rules, package/interface boundaries)?
- The guide is interactive and self-paced.
- Do not advance to the next module until Damian says:
- “Move on”, or equivalent explicit permission.
- If a concept is unclear, we pause and refine with more examples.
- Use precise language; avoid hand-wavy leaps.
- No HTML formatting.
- Use Markdown code fences with language identifiers for code.
- Prefer immutable-first modeling and typed domain modeling (product/sum types).
- When presenting mappings, be explicit about:
- numeric sizes, signedness, endianness assumptions
- alignment/padding expectations
- ownership and who frees memory
Module 1: Establish a shared baseline:
- Minimal core Wasm ABI constraints
- What “canonical ABI” means operationally
- Lifting/lowering for scalar types
- Morphir IR scalar type mapping and any mismatches
(Then proceed to strings/lists/etc.)