an easy to use header only JSON library for C++20. Contribute to nodeluna/ljson development by creating an account on GitHub.
alright then.
I see. expected
is such a great library to have regardless of the standard version.
oh c++03, I'm not familiar with that standard.
I enabled support for c++11 regardless, it's kinda cool to do so
ikr, constexpr is pretty cool. sure, no problem. I could make it fully compatible with c++14 without c++17 extensions if u wanna use it with c++14
what don't u get it? why did I make this? or what is the point of this type?
if you are unfamiliar with std::expected then check out https://en.cppreference.com/w/cpp/utility/expected.html
it's basically a type that let you return either a "value" or an "error" and the caller of the function has to check which did the function return. it's a modern way of handling errors in C++ that was introduced in C++23
because "if constexpr(...)" is a c++17 feature which i'm using it to allow usage of nl::unexpected() to return a nl::expected<nl::monostate, E> to nl::expected<T, E> in this copy constructor
cpp
template<class U> expected(const expected<U, E>& other) : _has_value(other.has_value()) // a copy constructor { if (_has_value) { if constexpr (std::is_same<U, monostate>::value) // it checks if U == monostate { // makes an empty instance of "T" } else if constexpr (std::is_same<U, T>::value) // it checks if U == T { // otherwise copies "other._value" into _value } else { static_assert( not std::is_same<U, T>::value, "no available conversion between the provided value types"); } } else { new (std::addressof(_error)) E(other.error()); } } template<class E> expected<monostate, E> unexpected(const E& e) // then this can covert <monostate, E> to <T, E> fine because of this copy constructor { return expected<monostate, E>(e); } // example usage nl::expected<int, std::string> meow = nl::unexpected("error");
but i could take a different approach and make 2 copy constructor one that explicitly takes
cpp
expected(const expected<monostate, E>& other)
and another
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expected(const expected& other)
I was also using "std::is_same_v" which is a c++17 feature instead "std::is_same<>::value" but i made a commit and changed it. it now compiles with c++14 but with c++17 extensions
you can constrain functions with c++20 concepts to ensure the compiler is calling the correct function if you're that worried
nope
** AI GENERATED SHOWCASE THAT'S REVIEWED BY ME **
Here are some cool and advanced features of the ljson library, with short code snippets for each:
- Seamless Construction from C++ Containers
You can build JSON objects and arrays directly from standard containers (e.g., std::map, std::vector, std::set, etc.): C++
cpp
std::map<std::string, int> obj = {{"a", 1}, {"b", 2}}; std::vector<std::string> arr = {"x", "y", "z"}; ljson::node data; data.insert("object", obj); data.insert("array", arr);
- Initializer-List Magic (Python/JavaScript-like Syntax)
cpp
ljson::node n = { {"name", "Alice"}, {"age", 30}, {"active", true}, {"tags", ljson::node({"dev", "cat_lover"})}, {"profile", ljson::node({{"city", "Paris"}, {"zip", 75000}})} }; // n is now a JSON object with nested objects and arrays!
- Type-Safe Value Accessors and Type Queries
cpp
if (n.at("age").is_integer()) std::cout << "Age: " << n.at("age").as_integer() << "\n"; if (n.at("tags").is_array()) { for (auto& tag : *n.at("tags").as_array()) std::cout << tag.as_string() << " "; }
- Type-Safe Mutation and Assignment
cpp
n.at("name") = "Bob"; // changes value to "Bob" n.at("age") = 31; // changes value to 31 n.at("active") = false; // changes value to false n.at("tags").push_back("gamer"); // add "gamer" to tags array
- Exception-Free Parsing (Error Handling Without throw)
cpp
auto result = ljson::parser::try_parse(R"({"x":1})"); if (result) { std::cout << "Parsed!\n"; } else { std::cerr << "Parse error: " << result.error().message() << "\n"; }
- Pretty Printing and File Output with Custom Indentation
cpp
n.dump_to_stdout({'\t', 2}); // Pretty print using tabs, 2 per indent n.write_to_file("output.json"); // Write to file std::string s = n.dump_to_string(); // Get pretty JSON string
- Operator Overloading for JSON Merge and Addition
Concatenate arrays and objects in a natural way:
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ljson::node a = {1, 2, 3}; ljson::node b = {4, 5}; ljson::node c = a + b; // [1,2,3,4,5] ljson::node obj1 = {{"x", 1}}; ljson::node obj2 = {{"y", 2}}; ljson::node obj3 = obj1 + obj2; // {"x":1,"y":2}
- Automatic Null Support
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n.insert("nothing", ljson::null); if (n.at("nothing").is_null()) std::cout << "It's " << n.at("nothing").stringify() << "!\n"; // It's null!
- Direct Construction from Nested Initializer Lists
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ljson::node arr = { 1, 2, 3, ljson::node({"nested", "array"}), ljson::null }; ljson::node obj = { {"a", 1}, {"b", ljson::node({2, 3, 4})}, {"c", ljson::node({"d", 5})} };
- Safe and Direct Value Setting and Mutation
You can set a node's value using .set() or assignment:
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n.at("val").set(123.45); n.at("flag") = true; n.at("sub").insert("newkey", "newval");
- Full Traversal and Iteration Support
cpp
// Iterating an array for (auto& item : *n.at("tags").as_array()) std::cout << item.as_string() << "\n"; // Iterating an object for (auto& [key, value] : *n.as_object()) std::cout << key << ": " << value.stringify() << "\n";
- Type-Checked Try-Cast APIs
Get error info if you try an invalid conversion:
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auto res = n.at("name").try_as_integer(); if (!res) std::cerr << "Not an integer: " << res.error().message() << "\n";
- Flexible Construction from Arbitrary Types
Any supported type (string, int, bool, null, etc.) or nested containers can be used directly in construction or insertion.
- Custom Indentation Everywhere
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n.dump_to_stdout({' ', 8}); // 8 spaces per indent
- Chaining Insertions and Additions
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ljson::node obj = { {"a", 1}, {"b", 2} }; obj += ljson::object_pairs{ {"c", 3}, {"d", 4} };
Summary: ljson offers a modern, expressive, and type-safe C++ JSON API with C++ types, safety, and STL integration.
thank you! if someone wants a more modern API that's kinda similar to tomlplusplus and a little nicer to use with modern error handling then my library might come in handy. my API is inspired a lot by tomlplusplus . i was trying to make a build system that uses TOML as a config file and I needed a json library so i decided to make my own as a learning experience which was great.
I'm not familiar with simdjson, but i know a little about nlohmann and I think the exception free path using ljson::expected is a nicer/safer approach. also there is convenient operator overloads in my library to add objects/array together, but nlohmann also has that i think
cpp
// accessing values in ljson ljson::node node = ljson::parser::parse(raw_json); std::string val = node.at("key").as_string(); // accessing values in nlohmann nlohmann::json::json json; raw_json >> json; std::string val = json["key"].get<std::string>();

safe enum
for anyone who doesn't know, this "-Werror=switch-enum" compiler option make the compiler throw an error if all of the enum values aren't explicitly handled in a "switch" statement
cpp
enum class colors { blue, red, purple, } void func(colors c) { switch(c) { case colors::blue: // do something break; case colors::red: // do something break; default: // do something break; } } int main() { func(colors::blue); }
this code doesn't compile on clang and gcc with the option "-Werror=switch-enum" because the "colors::purple" isn't explicitly handled. be aware that it doesn't throw a compiler error for "if" statements if one of the values isn't handled
I'm so excited for C++26

a modern JSON library for C++20 that's convenient to use
It's not fully finished yet, but it's getting there, and i didn't write documentation beyond the README.md and tests/test.cpp but I'd like some feedback on it.
features
- It's a header only library that's currently < 3000 loc
- no 3rd-party dependencies
- support for being imported as a module
- supports inserting std containers into json nodes
- highly type safe, which is made possible by using concepts
- easy-to-use object/array iterations
- easy-to-use type casting from json value to native c++ types which is enabled by std::variant and concepts
- exception-free parsing and value casting.
- modern error handling using "expected" type
- ! exception-free node.try_at("key") access is still not implemented but planned
- and more

a small implementation for std::expected for C++11
an implementation of std::expected for C++11. Contribute to nodeluna/expected development by creating an account on GitHub.
cool! thanks for letting me know, i'll try to keep an eye on it
very fancy and nice to use. i see
I searched for a River socket or riverctl command that would allow me to get the active workspace number, but i couldn't find a way for that currently in River. so i can't implement it for River not currently at least. unless maybe someone knows a way to get that info who could refer me to the documentation
thanks! kinda, but i'm using hyprland and the foot terminal. You can control the inactive opacity on hyprland, and control foot's alpha channel, which can make it transparent

a cli tool that changes your wallpaper when your active workspace changes
a tool that changes your wallpaper if your workspace changes - nodeluna/lunawp
it works on hyprland, sway or qtile and it uses swww to change the backgroud