Kotlin Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide, First Edition

The Kotlin REPL

Sometimes you might want to test out a small bit of Kotlin code to see what happens when you run it, similar to how you might use a piece of scratch paper to jot down steps for a small calculation. This is especially helpful as you are learning the Kotlin language. Luckily for you, IntelliJ provides a tool for quickly testing code without having to create a file. This tool is called the Kotlin REPL. We will explain the name in a moment – for now, open it up and see what it can do.

In IntelliJ, open the Kotlin REPL tool window by selecting Tools → Kotlin → Kotlin REPL (Figure 1.14).

Figure 1.14  Opening the Kotlin REPL tool window

IntelliJ will display the REPL at the bottom of the window (Figure 1.15). ...