Lua – Scripting Language and Virtual Machine
Lua is a scripting language with a simple grammar and a remarkably fast and lightweight virtual machine, which can also be used as a programming library. On a 32bit system the Lua VM fits into less than 128K of ROM-able binary code, and a single interpreter state occupies less than 64K of RAM.
It is well suited for use in embedded systems, for rapid prototyping and as a language for domain-specific extensions and webpage templates. We have successfully deployed it in client-server systems, web applications, and graphical user interfaces.
Patches for the Virtual Machine
In projects and for our own products we have created patches for the Lua virtual machine, which we provide on request:
- 32bit integer patch for systems without an FPU or with one that is too slow
- TLSF allocator patch for O(1) run-time behavior independent of heap fragmentation
See also our featured topic Embedded Systems.