Re: Web-related IPC -- WAS: Re: Product Differentiation

At 4:12p -0400 07/23/96, William F. Hammond wrote:
>*** Web-related inter-process communication (IPC) ***
>
>Scott Swanson writes in www-html:
> : . . .
> : > Walter Ian Kaye writes in <v03007802ae1977f4204e@[205.149.180.135]>:
> : > . . .
> : > Instead of that, make the newsreader and emailer dynamically linkable
> : > somehow.
> : . . .
> : Um, Internet Config, anyone?
> : That seems ideal.  API, consolidated helper info, etc.  Already
> : done, extensible, and doesn't seem to conflict with anything.
>
>Mark Fisher writes in response to Scott Swanson:
>
> : Now, if there were just versions for Win3.1, WinNT, and UNIX...

Well, the source code is freely available
(<ftp://redback.cs.uwa.edu.au//Others/Quinn/Config/>), so all it'll take
is for someone to "port" it... ;)


>I assume that this interchange is in reference to a platform- and
>OS-specific means of establishing inter-process communication between
>web-related applications.

Actually, it is a set of preferences. The APIs are for getting/setting
prefs (such as finding out which app is used for http), parsing URLs,
launching URLs (by finding the appropriate app), etc. Most Macintosh
Internet apps now support either Command+clicking on a URL or double-
clicking on a URL to invoke IC's launching function.


>What we need is a ** public cross-platform standard ** for
>coordinating intra-platform OS-level processes under the control of
>independently written and compiled, but cooperating, applications.
>
>Can anyone supply information or references (URLs or otherwise) on
>this topic?

Internet Config info: <http://coos.dartmouth.edu/~emk/>.
IC source code, etc: <ftp://redback.cs.uwa.edu.au//Others/Quinn/Config/>
There's also something called the "Spyglass Suite" -- I think the URL
can be found amongst Netscape's remote-control pages.

What exactly is it you have in mind? MacOS already use Apple events
for IPC. I think Netscape's remote control pages will probably give you
most of the info you're looking for.

>There was a hint from somebody at NCSA a couple of weeks ago in
>www-html that something like this might be forthcoming.
>
>(Can "Internet Config" be construed to be based on a public cross-
>platform standard?)

As I mentioned, the source code is publicly available. Have at it!

__________________________________________________________________________
    Walter Ian Kaye <boo@best.com>     Programmer - Excel, AppleScript,
          Mountain View, CA                         ProTERM, FoxPro, HTML
 http://www.natural-innovations.com/     Musician - Guitarist, Songwriter

Received on Wednesday, 24 July 1996 19:44:22 UTC