gforth-tutorial/16-return-stack.fth

: foo ( n1 n2 -- )
  \ Show the data stack content.
  .s
  \ Take an element from the usual data stack and push it
  \ onto the return stack.
  >r
  \ Again show the data stack content. There should be one
  \ element less now on the data stack.
  .s
  \ Copy the top element of the return stack and push it
  \ onto the data stack.
  r@
  \ Pop one element of the data stack.
  .
  >r .s
  r@ .
  \ Move an element from the top of the return stack to the
  \ top of the data stack.
  r> .
  r@ .
  r> . ;

\ When working with the return stack, for example to
\ temporarily store data, it is important to clean up the
\ return stack, before leaving the current
\ definition. Otherwise the result is usually a crash.

\ For example the following code from the tutorial:

: crash ( n -- )
  >r ;
5 crash

\ Results in something like the following error:

\ :167: Invalid memory address
\ 5 >>>crash<<<
\ Backtrace:
\ $7F50E6206A70 ;s

\ Things pushed to the return stack inside a definition can
\ only be accessed inside that definition.

\ Also note, that in standard Forth it is not possible to
\ mix usage of "locals" and the return stack.

\ Assignment: Can you rewrite any of the definitions you
\ wrote until now in a better way using the return stack?

: true -1 ;
: false 0 ;