2026-04-17 –, Amphitheater Dussane
The Nix expression language is challenging to evaluate due to non-strict semantics, dynamic scoping, a diverse collection of builtin operators, and tight integration with the Nix store. We give a progress report on Regiux, an interpreter for Nix which is narrowly focused on efficient evaluation of expressions.
Regiux is yet another attempt at a fast Nix evaluator. Come learn about the ingredients that go into modern compilers and interpreters, particularly:
- Lexing and parsing
- Desugaring and expanding
- Intermediate languages for lambda calculus
- Using the RPython JIT toolkit
- Bytecode for lazy graph evaluation
Corbin Simpson is a logician from Oregon. His interests include jazz piano, speedrunning, compiler engineering, site reliability engineering, and information security. Corbin has been a NixOS contributor for about a decade.