Laravel Toon Converter (json to toon for LLMs)

Laravel integration for TOON format: encode/decode JSON data into a token‑optimized notation for LLMs. This package provides first‑class TOON support in Laravel with spec‑conformant encoding/decoding, smart tabular formatting, safe key folding, and developer‑friendly APIs (Facade, helpers, DI).

Requirements

• PHP >= 8.0.1
• Laravel >= 9.19
• Composer

Installation

Install via Composer:

composer require jobmetric/laravel-toon

The service provider is auto‑discovered. The Toon facade and global helpers are registered.

Configuration

Publish/override the laravel-toon config as needed. Available options (defaults in parentheses):

• indent (2): spaces per indent level (encoder/decoder)
• delimiter (','): array delimiter — one of ,, \t, |
  • Non‑default delimiter appears in headers, e.g. [3|]: 1|2|3 or [2\t]{id\tname}:
• min_rows_tabular (1): if list of uniform objects has ≥ this count, use tabular format
• newline_final (false): append trailing newline on encode
• key_folding ('off'): 'off' or 'safe' — fold single‑key chains into dotted path when safe
• flatten_depth (-1): max depth of folding (-1 = unlimited)
• folding_exclude ([]): prefixes to opt‑out from folding
• expand_paths (false): expand dotted keys on decode (safe segments only)
• throw_on_decode_error (true): throw on invalid TOON; otherwise return null
• numbers_as_strings (false): decode numbers as strings instead of numeric types
• spec_strict (true): prefer strict spec behavior (no trailing newline, stricter normalization)

Features

• Spec‑Conformant Headers
  • Primitive arrays: [n]: v1,v2,v3
  • Tabular arrays: [n]{k1,k2}: then rows indented one level
  • Delimiter suffix for non‑default delimiters in headers: [n|], [n\t]
  • Empty arrays: [0]:
• Smart Tabular Encoding
  • Detects uniform lists of objects; emits compact tabular blocks with header fields
  • Human‑readable and token‑efficient (ideal for LLM prompts)
• Mixed Arrays with Nested Items
  • Renders [n]: then list items with - , and handles nested multi‑line blocks with correct indentation
• Safe Key Folding (optional)
  • key_folding='safe' flattens chains of single‑key nested objects into dot paths when safe; flatten_depth and folding_exclude supported
• Safe Path Expansion (optional)
  • expand_paths=true expands dotted keys into nested objects on decode (safe segments only)
• Robust Decoding and Validation
  • Strict indentation checks; array length and tabular row count validation
  • Configurable error handling via throw_on_decode_error
• Predictable String/Numeric Handling
  • Spec‑style quoting/escaping; optional numbers_as_strings mode
• First‑Class Laravel Integration
  • Facade Toon::encode / Toon::decode
  • Global helpers toon_encode / toon_decode
  • Container singleton and alias 'Toon' for DI

Usage

Facade

use JobMetric\Toon\Facades\Toon;

$data = [
    'id' => 42,
    'tags' => ['x', 'y'],
    'users' => [
        ['id' => 1, 'name' => 'Alice'],
        ['id' => 2, 'name' => 'Bob'],
    ],
];

$toon = Toon::encode($data);
// [2]{id,name}:
//   1,Alice
//   2,Bob

$decoded = Toon::decode($toon);
// same as $data

Helpers

$encoded = toon_encode(['numbers' => [1, 2, 3]]);
// [3]: 1,2,3

$decoded = toon_decode($encoded);

Container/DI

use JobMetric\Toon\ToonManager;

$toon = app(ToonManager::class)->encode(['items' => ['a', 'b']]);
// items[2]: a,b

Custom Delimiter

config()->set('laravel-toon.delimiter', '|');

echo Toon::encode(['nums' => [1,2,3]]);
// nums[3|]: 1|2|3

Safe Key Folding + Path Expansion

config()->set('laravel-toon.key_folding', 'safe');
config()->set('laravel-toon.expand_paths', true);

$encoded = Toon::encode(['a' => ['b' => ['c' => 1]]]);
// a.b.c: 1
$decoded = Toon::decode($encoded);
// ['a' => ['b' => ['c' => 1]]]

Error Handling

config()->set('laravel-toon.throw_on_decode_error', false);
$decoded = toon_decode("id:\n   name: Alice\n"); // null (no exception)

Numbers as Strings

config()->set('laravel-toon.numbers_as_strings', true);

$decoded = Toon::decode('n: 12345678901234567890');
// ['n' => '12345678901234567890']

Spec Notes (Parity)

• Headers only include delimiter suffix when non‑default (, is implicit): [3|], [2\t].
• Tabular header fields are delimited using the same active delimiter.
• Strings are quoted only when necessary (whitespace, delimiter present, structural chars, looks like literal/number, control chars, backslash).
• Keys are unquoted when safe; dotted keys allowed when each segment is a safe identifier.
• Decoder enforces indentation width to be multiples of indent (default 2).

Why jobmetric/laravel-toon

• Spec‑accurate TOON for Laravel (delimiter‑aware headers, robust parsing)
• Token‑efficient formatting — especially tabular encoding
• Safety controls (folding/expand for safe identifiers, strict indentation)
• Predictable numeric/string handling (optional strings for large numbers)
• Developer experience: Facade, helpers, alias, simple config

Contributing

Thank you for considering contributing to Laravel Toon! Please see CONTRIBUTING.md.

License

The MIT License (MIT). See LICENCE.md for details.