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Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Fri Sep 09, 2011 5:25 am
by bmont
At the RunRevLive '09 conference a new externals API was introduced. It was supposed to be released shortly after the conference. Here is the description from the conference highlights:
Mark Waddingham outlines the all-new externals API, which for the first time enables exchange of binary data, as well as multi-dimensional arrays. Additionally, the API enables passing ot pointers to data, dramatically reducing memory footprint and increasing execution speed because data no longer needs to be moved to external processes. This new API dramatically expands the possibilities for extending Revolution functionality.
What happened to this API? Was it ever released? If not, why not?

I see that LiveCode has been extended to support iOS externals but what about the desktop platforms?

Thanks

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2011 12:29 pm
by techmail55GA96a1
Did this thread get lost? I don't see an answer.

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2011 12:52 am
by reelstuff
Good Question, I am looking into creating an external for a project and I remembered this topic from some time ago, as I recall it was to be a game changer.

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 10:57 pm
by JosepM
Hi,

Any news about it?


Salut,
Josep

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 10:28 am
by n.allan
I remember that too at the 2009 conference. I think it can be seen in use in the new iOS externals API seen here: http://www.runrev.com/developers/docume ... rnals-sdk/

I'm not sure if this will be used on all platforms in the future.

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 10:43 am
by JosepM
Thanks for answer... Can someone confirm that this is the last and valid SDK for iOS? and form Mac Desktop?

Salut,
Josep M

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 12:48 pm
by shaosean
Hopefully they keep the website up-to-date, but some times things fall through the crack..

As for the desktop SDK, it seems the v3 one is the latest officially released one.. If you grab the supporting files from Externals Part 2 you will notice that there was some work done introducing some helper functions to (apparently) make it easier to work with data in the external and back to Rev..

There have also been at least two other builds not released publicly (other than at the conferences).. The first one that I am aware of, had the ability to spawn separate threads and then do a call back in to the engine when it was done.. And the second one allows for ObjC to be used to write the external.. Currently you can use ObjC, but you need to have a separate .m file and call the functions from C/C++

Anyone else have any other information they can shed on the external API that has yet to appear?

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 5:10 pm
by mwieder
Unfortunately, the new desktop externals api was *not* released at any of the conferences. Mark Waddingham's talk at the 2009 Edinburgh conference made it seem as if the release was imminent, and his talk at the 2011 conference gave some pre-release usage hints about the iOS externals package, but nothing's been forthcoming about externals for any other platform. Had such promise, too.

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Thu Oct 11, 2012 4:37 am
by monte
I've recently had success playing with most of the iOS SDK on OS X. I presume it also works on Win and Linux. LCObjectPost seems to get lost and you end up with beach balls but 99% of it is good and LCPostOnMainThread can be used asa workaround. What you need to do is grab the lcidl.mm file out of the intermediate build directory and use that. I can post a video if anyone wants.

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Thu Oct 11, 2012 8:23 am
by JosepM
Yes, please :)

Salut,
Josep M

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2012 8:32 am
by monte
Ok, will create a little video next week.

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2012 9:04 am
by JosepM
Great! :D

Re: Whatever happened to the new externals API?

Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2012 7:37 am
by monte
Here's the basics of what I'm doing: http://youtu.be/EYBwP9R_dMY