Is Harper a kind of linter, and how is it different from the others?

[BradKML]

There are a few linters out there with many extension scripts for each of them. Would Harper have a similar level of coverage? Since they have such a variety, it might not be the best idea to make those extensions compatible.

• https://github.com/btford/write-good
• https://github.com/errata-ai/vale
• https://github.com/amperser/proselint
• https://github.com/textlint/textlint

[mcecode]

Maybe others can chime in or correct me if I'm mistaken about something, but from a cursory look, I think the main difference is that most of the linters you listed focus on linting styles. As far as I can tell, Harper's goal isn't to lint styles but to lint general spelling and grammar. It leaves the choice of style to the user/writer. As the readme states:

Harper is an English grammar checker designed to be just right.

As I interpret it, this means it shows you what the correct grammar is, but leaves you enough space to express your own style of writing.

There are other differences between these linters such as Vale's support for spellchecking and between them and Harper like how Harper has support of checking code comments, not just documents, but I think the main differentiating factor is in their philosophy and what they choose to lint.

On another note, since textlint seems to be designed an a way where all of its functionality is derived from plugins, you can probably use Harper with it by creating a textlint rule using harper.js.

[BradKML]

Thanks for the answer, if Harper can replace both proprietary tools like Grammarly (which is also a prose linter) AND aged semi-FOSS tools like Languagetool, that would be great. I am not sure how the prose linting part can be reduced to rules tho without some sort of LLM support

[mcecode]

I think replacing them was/is the end goal when Elijah created Harper. Though, I'm not sure if prose/style linting is planned down the line, since, as I mentioned, Harper primarily focuses on linting general spelling and grammar. We do have rules for checking things like run-on sentences or excessive use of boring words, which could be considered stylistic lints, but the vast majority of rules that exist and that are being added are only/mainly aimed at checking general grammar.

[hippietrail]

I also had a very cursory look at them. I saw some implemented in JavaScript and some intended to run as cloud services. Harper is implemented in a fast systems language and runs locally. That means speed and privacy since your information is not getting sent over the internet to get linted.

[BradKML]

A lot of them are browser elements essentially, but there are some written in Python/Golang as well I think?

[hippietrail]

A lot of them are browser elements essentially, but there are some written in Python/Golang as well I think?

Right you are. Vale is in Go so I might give it another look. Proselint seems to have equal parts Python and JavaScript. Python has a bigger ecosystem than JavaScript but is slower.