Fortran Language Extension for Nova

Fortran provides comprehensive language support for free-form Fortran (F90 and later) in the Nova editor, powered by tree-sitter-fortran.

Features

• Syntax Highlighting - Full syntax highlighting for modern Fortran including keywords, types, operators, functions, subroutines, and more
• Symbol Navigation - Navigate to programs, modules, subroutines, and functions via the symbol list (⌘P)
• Code Folding - Fold major code blocks including programs, modules, functions, subroutines, loops, and conditionals
• Comment Support - Proper handling of Fortran comment syntax with !

Supported File Types

This extension automatically activates for the following file types:

• .f, .f90, .f95, .f03, .f08 - Fortran source files
• .dek - MESA deck files
• .inc - Include files
• inlist* - MESA inlist files (namelist files with no extension)

Language Support

This extension supports free-form Fortran (Fortran 90 and later). Key supported features include:

• Program, module, and submodule structures
• Subroutine and function definitions
• Derived type definitions
• Interface blocks
• Control structures (if/else, select case, do loops, where)
• Intrinsic types and operators
• Array syntax and operations
• Procedure calls

Note: Fixed-form Fortran (FORTRAN 77 and earlier) is not currently supported.

Limitations

• This is a syntax-only extension and does not include Language Server Protocol (LSP) support
• For advanced features like auto-completion, refactoring, and diagnostics, consider using fortls with an LSP client

Installation

From the Nova Extension Library

1. Open Nova
2. Go to Extensions → Extension Library
3. Search for "Fortran"
4. Click Install

Manual Installation

1. Download the latest release from GitHub
2. Double-click the .novaextension file to install

Credits

This extension was built with Claude Code, Anthropic's AI-powered coding assistant, which was instrumental in:

• Compiling the tree-sitter parser for Nova's architecture
• Creating comprehensive syntax highlighting queries
• Implementing symbol navigation and code folding
• Setting up the complete extension structure

The syntax parsing is powered by tree-sitter-fortran by Matthew Stadelman.

Contributing

Bug reports and feature requests are welcome on the GitHub issue tracker.

License

MIT License - see the repository for details.

Changelog

[1.0.0] - 2025-10-02

Added

• Initial release of Fortran language extension for Nova
• Syntax highlighting for free-form Fortran (F90+)
• Keywords, types, operators, literals
• Function/subroutine definitions and calls
• Array syntax and operators
• Symbol navigation for major code structures
• Programs, modules, submodules
• Subroutines and functions
• Derived types
• Code folding support
• Programs, modules, functions, subroutines
• Derived types and interfaces
• Control structures (if, do, select case, where)
• File type detection
• Extensions: .f, .f90, .f95, .f03, .f08, .dek, .inc
• Special support for inlist files (MESA namelist files)
• Automated testing infrastructure
• Test file with comprehensive examples
• Automated symbol detection validation

Known Issues

• Comments starting with !! appear as bookmark-style symbols in the symbol navigator
• This appears to be Nova-internal behavior that cannot be controlled via tree-sitter queries
• Affects both actual documentation comments and commented-out code blocks using ! ! pattern
• The actual program/module/function/subroutine symbols work correctly
• This is a minor cosmetic issue that does not affect core functionality

Credits

• Built with Claude Code
• Powered by tree-sitter-fortran