TagSet

f/:lhs=rhs

assigns rhs to be the value of lhs, and associates the assignment with the symbol f.

Details

  • TagSet defines upvalues, downvalues or subvalues as appropriate.
  • The symbol f in f/:lhs=rhs must appear in lhs as the head of lhs, the head of the head, one of the elements of lhs, or the head of one of the elements.
  • A common case is f/:h[f[args]]=rhs.
  • You can see all the rules associated with a particular symbol by typing ?symbol.
  • If f appears several times in lhs, then f/:lhs=rhs associates the assignment with each occurrence.
  • When it appears in unevaluated symbolic form, TagSet is treated as a scoping construct so that variables in nested occurrences are renamed if necessary.

Examples

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Basic Examples  (1)

Define a symbolic property of a symbol:

Scope  (3)

Different Kinds of Values  (3)

For ownvalues, the tag is redundant:

For downvalues, the tag is redundant:

Use a tag to define upvalues:

Applications  (1)

Build a database of exchange rates:

Properties & Relations  (5)

^= defines upvalues in the same way as using a tag does:

The right side of an immediate definition is evaluated when the definition is made:

The right side of a delayed definition is evaluated each time the definition is used:

Definitions with the same left side overwrite earlier ones:

Definition prints definitions associated with a symbol:

Information prints various information about a symbol, including any definitions:

UpValues returns a list of rules corresponding to any upvalues defined:

Use =. to clear definitions with a particular left-hand side:

Clear all definitions:

Possible Issues  (2)

In the presence of global variables, pattern variables may show unexpected behavior:

Delayed assignments behave as expected:

Use upvalues to assign to subscripted variables:

Subscripted variables are distinct from indexed variables:

Wolfram Research (1988), TagSet, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/TagSet.html.

Text

Wolfram Research (1988), TagSet, Wolfram Language function, https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/TagSet.html.

CMS

Wolfram Language. 1988. "TagSet." Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Wolfram Research. https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/TagSet.html.

APA

Wolfram Language. (1988). TagSet. Wolfram Language & System Documentation Center. Retrieved from https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/TagSet.html

BibTeX

@misc{reference.wolfram_2024_tagset, author="Wolfram Research", title="{TagSet}", year="1988", howpublished="\url{https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/TagSet.html}", note=[Accessed: 22-December-2024 ]}

BibLaTeX

@online{reference.wolfram_2024_tagset, organization={Wolfram Research}, title={TagSet}, year={1988}, url={https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/TagSet.html}, note=[Accessed: 22-December-2024 ]}