Tutorial Directory

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You can find more about this page in LuaTutorial. It is suggested you read the topics from top to bottom, as they increase in complexity. TutorialExamples explains how the examples have been created and you can follow them. The tutorial is written for the current version of Lua, version 5.1. The LuaShortReference is a useful helper. If you would like to make any comments about the tutorial please do so on the TutorialComments page (or contact the primary author NickTrout).

Introductory topics.
- LuaTypesTutorial - A gentle introduction to variable types used in Lua.
- AssignmentTutorial - More on setting variable values.
- NumbersTutorial - The Lua number type and related functions.
- StringsTutorial - String (text) usage and related functions.
- TablesTutorial - Lua tables (arrays) and related functions.
- ExpressionsTutorial - Performing calculations.
- FunctionsTutorial - Introduction to functions.

Programming in Lua.
- ControlStructureTutorial - Keywords if, while, repeat, for, break.
- ForTutorial - Detail on the for statement.
- FunctionCallTutorial - Passing arguments and returning values.
- ScopeTutorial - Rules about where variables live and the local keyword.
- ModulesTutorial - Modules, grouping related code

Lua standard libraries - Brief explanation and examples of usage of each.
- CoreFunctionsTutorial - Basic functions e.g. dofile, assert, error, etc.
- MathLibraryTutorial - Mathematical functions
- StringLibraryTutorial - String manipulation
- TableLibraryTutorial - Table (or array) manipulation
- OsLibraryTutorial - Operating system facilities
- IoLibraryTutorial - Input/Output facilities - See section 5.7 of the Reference Manual [1]
- ModuleLibraryTutorial? - Module facilities - See section 5.3 of the Reference Manual [2]
- DebugLibraryTutorial - Debugging facilities
- CoroutineLibraryTutorial? - Coroutine manipulation - See section 5.2 of the Reference Manual [3]

More advanced Lua concepts.
- IteratorsTutorial - Writing custom for iterators.
- PatternsTutorial - String searching.
- GarbageCollectionTutorial - What happens to deleted objects?
- CoroutinesTutorial - Multiple functions running at the same time.
- ThreadsTutorial - Using Lua in a pre-emptive threading environment.
- OptimisationTutorial? - Getting good performance from Lua. See OptimisationTips.
- WeakTablesTutorial - Special table mode where elements are weak references.
- EnvironmentsTutorial? - Lua's global namespace mechanism. See Programming in Lua, 2nd edition [4]
- MetamethodsTutorial - Lua's powerful extension mechanism.
- ObjectOrientationTutorial - An introduction to simulating classes.
- InheritanceTutorial - A technique for implementing OO inheritance in Lua.

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Last edited March 21, 2007 11:20 am GMT (diff)