Compact Is Not TypeScript. That's the Whole Point.

Most developers approach Compact with the wrong frame. They see the syntax - functions, types, imports, curly braces, and conclude: this is basically TypeScript with some ZK stuff sprinkled in. Then they start writing. And things break in ways that don't make sense. Loops that should work don't compile. Logic that feels correct fails silently. Private data bleeds into places it shouldn't. The syntax didn't lie to them. Their mental model did. The Illusion Is the Lesson Here's a Compact circuit: