ISO IEC 15145-1997 PDF

Full title and description

ISO/IEC 15145:1997 — Information technology — Programming languages — FORTH. This International Standard defines a standard interface between a Forth system and a Forth program by specifying the core vocabulary ("words") and expected environment provided by a Standard System to promote portability and interoperability of Forth programs and implementations.

Abstract

The standard specifies the set of words and the behavioral interface that a conforming Forth system must provide to programs, together with semantic expectations for those words and the execution environment. Its purpose is to reduce variation between implementations so that source-level Forth programs can be ported more easily across systems and architectures, with particular attention to common embedded and interpreter-based uses of the language.

General information

• Status: Published (international standard; confirmed in periodic reviews).
• Publication date: 8 May 1997 (bibliographic listings also cite April 1997 as the publication month).
• Publisher: ISO and IEC (joint publication under ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 22).
• ICS / categories: 35.060 — Languages used in information technology.
• Edition / version: Edition 1.0 (1997).
• Number of pages: 210 pages.

Scope

ISO/IEC 15145:1997 establishes the normative core of the Forth programming language required of a "Standard System." It covers the definition of standard words (the language vocabulary), expected run-time environment characteristics (stacks, control structures, basic I/O semantics), and requirements intended to enable program portability between conforming implementations. The scope is focused on the language interface rather than implementation-specific optimizations or platform-dependent extensions.

Key topics and requirements

• Definition of the Standard System vocabulary: the canonical set of Forth words and their semantics.
• Execution environment expectations: data stack, return stack, and interaction rules between program and system.
• Basic input/output and device interaction semantics for portability.
• Error and exception handling conventions and diagnostics.
• Guidance for optional extensions and recommendations to preserve source portability.
• Requirements aimed at implementers to ensure consistent behavior across architectures and interpreter/compiler variants.

Typical use and users

Implementers of Forth interpreters and compilers, developers maintaining or porting legacy Forth applications, embedded-systems engineers who use Forth for low-level or resource-constrained environments, educators covering programming-language design and history, and standards bodies comparing language specifications. The standard is useful where predictable, portable behavior of Forth code is required across multiple systems.

Related standards

Other programming-language standards produced by ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 22 (for example, standards covering C and other languages) and national/industry Forth specifications (such as ANS Forth) are related by subject matter. Implementers often consult ISO/IEC language standards and community Forth documentation together when assessing portability and conformance strategies.

Keywords

Forth, programming language, stack-based language, interpreter, standard words, portability, embedded systems, ISO/IEC, JTC 1, SC 22.

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: ISO/IEC 15145:1997 is the international standard that defines a standard interface and core vocabulary for the Forth programming language, specifying the words and environment a conforming Forth system must provide.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers the canonical set of Forth words, expected runtime environment characteristics (stacks, control structures, basic I/O behavior), error handling conventions, and guidance intended to improve source-level portability between implementations.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Forth implementers (interpreter/compiler authors), embedded-system developers using Forth, maintainers of legacy Forth code, educators, and organizations concerned with language portability and conformance.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: The document was published in 1997 (Edition 1.0). The published standard has been subject to periodic review; it remains the ISO/IEC publication for FORTH from 1997. Users should check national and ISO catalogues for the latest confirmation or any subsequent revisions when deciding on conformance or procurement.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: It is part of ISO/IEC programming-language standards maintained under ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 22. While not one volume of a contiguous numbered "series" specific to Forth, it sits alongside other language standards maintained by the same technical committee.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Forth, stack-based, standard words, portability, interpreter, embedded, ISO/IEC, programming languages.