Go backward to Interfacing with Java Go up to Building CONCERT Instruments Go forward to Example: Mathematica

Interfacing with External Applications

• Closed World
  • Most applications designed for interactive use.
  • Command line arguments, environment variables (startup time), resource properties (windows environment), standard I/O, file I/O, special hooks (callback programs).
  • Embedding difficult to impossible.
• Dynamic linking
  • Componentware.
  • CORBA/OpenDoc, DCOM, JavaBeans, ...
  • Embedding easy (but not widely used).
• External Links
  • Facilities for communication with external programs.
  • Mathematica's MathLink.
  • Embedding not easy but possible.

The external side is the problem!