People have complaints about configuration languages all the time; properties are too simple, XML is too verbose, JSON doesn’t allow comments, YAML is only suited for small configuration files, TOML’s tables are a bit weird (IMHO). So how about we throw all the good aspects onto a heap and see what comes out of it? And with only one task in mind: configuration. (Just like JSON is intended for datatransfer, hence it does not support comments.) Therefor I’m introducing TECL, the Totally Encompassing Configuration Language. But the name is open for suggestions. 😀

The goals are:

• Simple, like properties, but supporting a hierarchy
• Compact, like JSON, but allowing comments
• Formal hierarchy, unlike YAML’s indentation based one
• Schema support
• Conditions
• Multi line strings
• Tables