CoffeeScript Object Notation
Atom uses a configuration format called “CSON” for all of its configuration files. While it is possible to use JSON instead, getting used to CSON is pretty easy and I think that CSON is a better file format for configuration files than JSON is due to its simplicity. (It has a lot in common with YAML, another common configuration file format.)
CSON is short for CoffeeScript Object Notation. It works identically to the more common JSON. As a matter of fact, almost all JSON is valid CSON. But, CSON can be written more easily and compact if certain conventions are followed. If you indent the CSON in a typical way, you are allowed to omit the curly braces ({
and }
) and commas (,
). For example, this JSON:
{ "foo": 5, "bar": { "baz": false } }
Is completely equivalent to this CSON:
"foo": 5 "bar": "baz": false
Notice the only changes were to remove the curly braces, the comma and reduce the indentation by one level (because the outermost object declaration is assumed).