Drop-Dead Simple Key-Value Tree data format

If you are...
	Tired of JSON's obnoxious quotes
		Like\ these `{"ugly": "redundant"}`
	Confused by Tom's "Obvious" "Minimal" Language
		WTF is the diff between
			`[table]`
			and
			`[[table]]`
			???
		https://hitchdev.com/strictyaml/why-not/toml
	In an asylum, thanks to YAML
		https://noyaml.com
		https://ruudvanasseldonk.com/2023/01/11/the-yaml-document-from-hell

Then this format is for you!

This format isn't just minimalist, it's brutalist. The motto is "Pure structure, no semantics". This is a data format not a language. This format embraces the fact that schemas are inevitable, so you are expected to explicitly define a schema or implicitly assume it.

FAQ

If it's so simple, why trees? Aren't trees complicated?

No, the tree-like structure of this format is merely a consequence of recursion:

table is set of entries
entry is key-value pair
key is string
value is string or table

Trees are everywhere in nature, math, and comp-sci, even in unexpected places. So I'd argue this format must be able to express them easily.

If you insist on flatness, INI exists ;)

Name

The name is meant to evoke a "no bullshit" vibe.

The "drop dead" part can be interpreted as "dead-simple and elegant" or as an insult to other formats, depending on your mood ;)

File extension is .skvt. I suggest you pronounce it as "scot". People can make jokes about "TOML skvt" being similar to "Tom Scott"

Grammar & Types

This is the normative part of the specification

Important

I haven't fully settled on this, so the format is technically unstable. Expect breaking-changes

The only data-types are

• UTF-8 text string
• table of unordered key-value entries
• ordered list: this might be removed from the spec

Line-breaks (\n only; \r is undefined for now) delimit entries, delimits the key from its value. So far, I think the 1st space should be assumed to be the delimiter, rather than the last one. If a key is associated to a table or list value, then any in the key-string should be assumed to be a character like any other.

Indentation is significant, and specifies nesting. Only "hard" tabs (\t) because I hate YAML and tabs are superior

I'm hesitant to support comments, as the empty key can be used as alternative:

name foobar
 this is a comment
version 0.1.0
dependencies
	yeet 0.2
	 version from the future, lol
	anyhow 69.0
	regex 1.0

Implementors are free to choose how to handle duplicate keys. For debugging, I recommend printing an error or warning

Usage in the wild

This format is so damn simple that you might be already using it!

• Many special files in Linux /proc/* have similar format
• This tool I made uses a shallow subset of this format, a variant where last delimits key-value
• etc... (let me know of other examples)

See also

• CSVZ