{todo:({id 1 name "get eggs" done nil} {id 8 name "fix computer" done t})} 

Let me know if that seems sufficient for now.

You're right that Arc still can't read tables written via `write`. That is definitely worth supporting. Here is an example of how it could work: https://github.com/sctb/lumen/blob/55b14ca8aafeaf6b0ca1b636d...

Eh? You definitely can, in Racket. :) The only problem I know of is that when you write a mutable table, you read back an immutable one.

---

"You're right that Arc still can't read tables written via `write`."

Arc's supported this for as long as I can remember. The only problem is that they come back immutable.

Here's Arc 3.2 on Racket 7.0:

  arc> (= foo (fromstring (tostring:write:obj a 1 b 2) (read)))
  #hash((a . 1) (b . 2))
  arc> (= foo!a 3)
  Error: "hash-set!: contract violation\n  expected: (and/c hash? (not/c immutable?))\n  given: '#hash((a . 1) (b . 2))\n  argument position: 1st\n  other arguments...:\n   'a\n   3"

  arc> (= foo (fromstring (tostring:write:obj a 1 b 2) (read)))
  '#hash((a . 1) (b . 2))
  
  arc> (= foo!a 3)
  3
  
  arc> foo
  '#hash((a . 3) (b . 2))

  {'id 3 
   'c {
      'name "james c clarke" 
      'age 23 
      'addr "1724 Cox Ave. NY, NY 90210"
     }
  }

[1] http://arclanguage.org/item?id=20803

  (= tpipe {todo 
              '({id 1 cont "get eggs" done '(nil)}
                {id 23 cont "fix toilet" done '(nil)})
            week '(nil)
            today '({id 83 cont "Build something that works in arc" done '(nil)})

  arc> tpipe!todo.1!id

    (= npipe {todo 
                (list {id 1 cont "get eggs" done '(nil)}
                      {id 23 cont "fix toilet" done '(nil)})
              week '(nil)
              today (list {id 83 cont "Build something that works in arc" done '(nil)})
              done (list {id 44 cont "Research Ordered Associative Arrays" done '(2019 1 21)})})

    (= unqpipe {todo 
                `(,{id 1 cont "get eggs" done '(nil)}
                  ,{id 23 cont "fix toilet" done '(nil)})
                week '(nil)
                today `(,{id 83 cont "Build something that works in arc" done '(nil)})
                done `(,{id 44 cont "Research Ordered Associative Arrays" done '(2019 1 21)})})

    '(foo bar)

    (foo bar)

So in a similar way

    {foo "bar"}

I don't agree. quoting a list is a way to protect the expression from evaluation, in this case because round brackets normally indicate an expression that needs to be called. A table literal {...} doesn't need protection from evaluation as a callable expression as it's just data and like any other data it should evaluate to itself. And, frankly, it would really suck having to protect that data everywhere in my code because someone wants a really nuanced use case to work.

I've been trying to get the tables generated by the personal data link in news to export as JSON for a while now[0]. Part of the problem seems to be related to this - Racket doesn't seem to know what to do with #tagged tem or #hash (much less nils.)