Add C/C++ to the Tcl/Tk Plugin!
David Beazley
Announcing....
*** SWIG for the Tcl/Tk Netscape Plugin ***
1. What is SWIG?
SWIG (Simplified Wrapper and Interface Generator) is a tool that lets
you easily extend Tcl with C and C++ code using a file with ANSI C and
C++ declarations. SWIG supports all builtin C/C++ datatypes and gives
you type-checked pointers to structures, arrays, and other complex
objects. SWIG requires no modifications to your C code so you can try
it without risk. (Try it, you'll like it).
2. What is SWIG for the Tcl/Tk Netscape Plugin?
Have you wanted to extend the Tcl Netscape plugin with new features? SWIG
lets you build C/C++ extension modules and load them right into the
plugin to build cool applications.
3. What is provided?
- A new SWIG module that knows how to add C code to the plugin module.
- A slightly relaxed security policy that lets you load
extensions and source Tcl scripts in your own directory (or wherever
you are running Netscape).
- Two simple examples showing how it works. Includes a Makefile
showing how to extend the plugin.
4. What can you use it for?
- Playing around with the plugin.
- Extend the plugin with new capabilities for your own local
applications. For example, you could extend the plugin with
C functions to access a database or offload computationally
intensive operations onto a client machine.
- Impressing your friends.
5. What about security?
SWIG lets you add almost any C function to the Tcl/Tk plugin
(including the nasty "exec" function). However, SWIG generated
extensions will *not* run unless a user has actually downloaded the
extension to their local machine and is running with the
less-restrictive security policy used by the SWIG module. While not
very useful for generic internet applications, such modules can be
used for highly specialized applications running on an internal
network or being used by specific groups of users (who would all need
to have the extension modules loaded on their local machines).
Finally, as with candy, if you're concerned about safety, do not
accept C plugin extensions from strangers.
6. Where do I get it?
The SWIG plugin module is available on the SWIG homepage at
http://www.cs.utah.edu/~beazley/SWIG
or via anonymous FTP at
ftp://ftp.cs.utah.edu/pub/beazley/SWIG/swigplug.tar.gz
7. Requirements :
As with the Tcl/Tk plugin, the SWIG module is highly experimental.
Here's what you'll need to use it :
- SWIG 1.0b3 (also available at the above locations)
- Netscape Navigator 3.0
- Tcl/Tk Plugin
- Tcl7.5/Tk4.1
- A machine running Solaris 2.x
Windows-NT and other Unix variants have not been tried at this time.
Comments, questions, and concerns should be address to the address
below. Enjoy!
Cheers,
Dave
----------------------------------------------------------------
Dave Beazley
Department of Computer Science
University of Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah 84112
bea...@cs.utah.edu http://www.cs.utah.edu/~beazley
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