RFC: Syntax for read- and write- access to properties

rfcs/syntax-property-access-modifiers.md

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+# Feature name
+
+## Summary
+
+We need syntax to match the semantics of read-only and writed-only modifiers for table properties and indexers.
+
+## Motivation
+
+See the semantic RFCs for motivation.
+
+## Design
+
+TBD
+
+## Drawbacks
+
+TBD
+
+## Alternatives
+
+The design space for syntax includes:
+
+* Names, symbols or attributes?
+* Modifier position?
+* How to parse or serialize properties with differing read- and write-types?
+
+### Names, symbols or attributes?
+
+We could use names for modifiers, such as
+
+* `get` and `set`
+* `const` and `mut`
+* `read` and `write`
+* `readonly` and `writeonly`
+
+One issue is that these are all valid identifiers, so if we want
+backward compatbility, they cannot be made keywords. This presents
+issues with code that uses the chosen names as type or property names,
+for instance:
+
+```lua
+  type set = { [any] : bool }
+  type ugh = { get set : set }
+```
+
+We could use symbols, for example
+
+* `+` and `-`
+* (Are there other obvious pairs of symbols?)
+
+We could use attributes, for example
+
+* `@get` and `@set`
+* ... as per "names for modifiers", only prefixed by `@` ...
+
+These both have the advantage of being unambiguous and easier to
+parse. Symbols are terser, whch is both good and bad.
+
+### Modifier position?
+
+For attributes, the position is given by the syntax of attributes, for example:
+
+```lua
+  type Vector2 = { @get x: number, @get y : Number }
+```
+
+For the other proposals, there are four possibilities, depending on whether
+the modifier is west-coast or east-coast, and whether it modifies the propertry name or the type:
+
+```lua
+  type Vector2 = { get x : number, get y : number }
+  type Vector2 = { x get : number, y get : number }
+  type Vector2 = { x : get number, y : get number }
+  type Vector2 = { x : number get, y : number get }
+```
+
+The east-coast options are not easy-to-reade with names, but are
+easier with symbols, especially since `T?` is already postfix, for
+example
+
+```lua
+  type Foo = { p: number?+ }
+```
+
+### How to parse or serialize properties with differing read- and write-types?
+
+One corner case is that type inference may deduce different read- and
+write-types, which need to be presented to the user. For example the
+read-type of `x` is `Animal` but its write-type is `Dog` in the principal type of:
+
+```lua
+   function f(x)
+     let a: Animal = x.pet
+     x.pet = Dog.new()
+     return a
+   end
+```
+
+If we are adding the modifier to the property name, we can repeat the name, for example
+
+```lua
+  x : { get pet : Animal, set pet : Dog }
+```
+
+If we are adding the modifier to the property type, we can give both types, for example:
+```lua
+  x : { pet : get Animal + set Dog }
+```
+
+This syntax plays well with symbols for modifiers, for example
+```lua
+  x : { pet : +Animal -Dog }
+```