Method and system for integrating external functions into an application environment

• US 6,546,433 B1
• Filed: 01/27/2000
• Issued: 04/08/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Novell Incorporated (Open Text Corporation)
• Inventors: Matheson, Richard J.
• Primary Examiner(s): COURTENAY III, ST JOHN
• Application Number:
  US09/491,963
• Time in Patent Office: 1,167 Days
• Field of Search: 717/100-113, 709/310-320
• US Class Current: 719/318
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/38 for implementing user interfaces

Abstract

A method and system for integrating external functions into an application environment. The system includes an application environment, and a predetermined interface for communicating with an external function library. External functions offered by the external function library are integrated into the application environment such that they can be used in a formula as if they were native functions. According to another embodiment, an application environment is provided which implements pass by asynchronous-access-mechanism variables, and enables an external function to have access to a user interface object after the function has returned from an invocation.

Claims

1. A system operative to integrate a plurality of external functions into an application environment, comprising:

a client module, the client module being a component of an editing environment in which an application can be developed, the client module having a predetermined interface that includes a predetermined function signature and being operative to bi-directionally interact with one or more different external function modules that have the predetermined interface that includes the predetermined function signature, such that attributes of at least one external function of an external function module can be provided from the external function module to the editing environment; and

a first structure operative to retain a plurality of attributes of the at least one external function, wherein the editing environment is configured to communicate with the first structure and to display the attributes to a developer and wherein the editing environment is further configured to receive a function invocation provided by the developer and to use the attributes in the first structure to determine whether the function invocation is correct.

2. A system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined interface comprises at least one registration function, the registration function being operative to receive the plurality of attributes of the external function, and to store the plurality of attributes into the first structure.

3. A system according to claim 1, wherein the client module is operative to signal the external function module for help information relating to the at least one external function, and to display the help information on a display device.

4. A system according to claim 1, wherein the client module further comprises an asynchronous event manager and an access object, the access object being coupled to a user interface object in the application environment via the asynchronous event manager, and the access object being operative to interact with the asynchronous event manager and the external function.

5. A system according to claim 4, wherein the access object is initiated in response to an invocation of the external function, and wherein the access object remains coupled to the user interface object after the external function returns to a calling process.

6. A system according to claim 1, further comprising an external function module having a plurality of external functions, and a display device, the client module being operative to display the name of each of the plurality of external functions in the external function module on the display device.

7. A method for integrating an external function into an application environment, the method comprising:

specifying an external function module having at least one external function;

initiating the specified external function module;

receiving a plurality of attributes of the at least one external function from the specified external function module;

storing the plurality of attributes in a symbol table;

retrieving at least one of the attributes from the symbol table;

using the at least one attribute to determine if a function invocation provided by a developer is correct; and

if the function invocation is not correct, indicating an error condition.

8. A method according to claim 7, further comprising displaying one of the attributes of the at least one external function on a display device.

9. A method according to claim 7, further comprising the application environment receiving a command line referencing the at least one external function, and determining if the at least one external function is referenced in the command line according to the plurality of attributes of the at least one external function.

10. A method according to claim 7, further comprising invoking the at least one external function in an execution mode of a developed application, and associating a response of the at least one external function with a user interface object associated with the developed application.

11. A method according to claim 10, further comprising initiating an access object as a function of one of the plurality of attributes of the at least one external function, coupling the access object to the user interface object, and maintaining the coupling after the at least one external function returns from a calling process.

12. A method for integrating an external function into an application environment, the method comprising:

specifying an external function module having at least one external function;

initiating the specified external function module;

receiving a plurality of attributes of the at least one external function from the specified external function module;

storing the plurality of attributes in a symbol table;

invoking the at least one external function in an execution mode of a developed application;

associating a response of the at least one external function with a user interface object associated with the developed application;

initiating an access object as a function of one of the plurality of attributes of the at least one external function;

coupling the access object to the user interface object; and

maintaining the coupling after the at least one external function returns from a calling process.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein the at least one external function is operative to initiate a thread, the thread being operative to communicate with the access object.