Neko

Neko is a high-level dynamically typed programming language and virtual machine. Neko as a target of HaxeFlixel and OpenFL supports an API close to the CPP builds of HaxeFlixel.

The NekoVM itself is part of the Haxe Toolkit and is used throughout Haxelib, Lime, OpenFL and flixel-tools to easily create cross-platform tools. Neko gives the power of the Haxe standard library to cross platform development tools.

Neko itself is also used server-side in websites and general backend systems like the Haxelib. It contains a fully featured threading and socket API as well as integration with the Apache server.

Joshua Granick:

"When NME (Now known as Lime/OpenFL) was first created, it was designed to provide graphics, sound and other media for the NekoVM, but since the performance was not yet ideal, Hugh then decided (if I have my order of events correct) to experiment with a C++ target for Haxe. It worked, and HXCPP was born."

Its advantages:

  • Extremely fast compilation time that can run on Linux, Mac or Windows.
  • Since it uses almost the same API as the CPP builds, it is a quicker way to test. When you test with Flash it will use a much different part of the Haxe API.

Its disadvantages:

  • Being a virtual machine, it is does not perform as well as a native build using the SDL builds of Lime. Performance can be close to the Flash Player depending on the context.

Conditionals

#if neko
//your neko code
#end

#if desktop
//your neko code
#end

Command line

The basic command to compile and test the Neko target:

lime test neko