OS X API Calls?

Is BlitzMax capable of interfacing with the OS X API system?

Thanks,
-Garrett

I think yes but i don't know how.......i'm sorry.........

Check the help section "Language/Advanced topics". Yes, you can access system APIs. ;-)

Heyyyyy..... Totally forgot I asked this question. Thanks Lestroso, and thanks
Winni for the replies.

Winni, thanks, I'll check the docs on that.

-Garrett

winni ....in that page there's only a c++ and asm discussion..........so you can implement c++and asm in your program.....but i dont' see the api calls.....

bye

--Lestroso

Hi Lestroso,

But that is exactly what this whole API thing is about: You use this feature of BlitzMax to write wrappers for API calls.

Usually, you write some C-code to call the system function that you need and just link it to your Blitzmax program. In the C module, the most important part will probably be to include the required header files and call the correct system functions.

The point here is that you will have to study quite a lot of Apple's developer documentation to find what you need.

This little thing here e.g. calls an OS X API function that will spawn a new thread running a function that you wrote in BlitzMax:

Import "-std=c99" '
Import "macthread.c" '

Extern
Function CreateThread(threadfunction())="bmx_createthread"
EndExtern


Now define a function in your BlitzMax code and call CreateThread( myFunction ).



The C-code does the actual API calls. In this case, it will call the system functions to create a new thread.


macthread.c:
----------------

#include <stdlib.h>
#include <pthread.h>



long bmx_createthread(void *functionC())
{
int rc1;
pthread_t thread1;

pthread_attr_t stack_size;
pthread_attr_init(&stack_size);
pthread_attr_setstacksize(&stack_size, 1048576);

rc1=pthread_create(&thread1,&stack_size,functionC,NULL);

return (long)thread1;
}


If you look around for SQLiter and TeaMonkey's SQLite module, then you can get an impression of how it (sometimes) can be done without writing C-code yourself. But still, you need to know what to link against your own code, and without some basic understanding of C (not C++, just C) you will most likely not get very far.

BTW, the whole MaxGUI thing is basically a huge wrapper for API calls - actually Cocoa calls (which is an Objective-C API).

Hope this helps a bit,
W.

Nice reply Wini !

what is the ="bmx_createthread" text after the external function declaration?

Winny i'm sorry, you're right....nice example....do you have something else examples codes ?

thanks a lot...........


Lestroso

Hi there,

Lestroso, you can download GMan's MySQL & PostgreSQL wrapper classes, he's using that stuff a lot. Or you can scrutinize the MaxGUI source code.

AngelDaniel, I guess =bmx_createthread maps the BlitzMax function declaration to the C-function. I only took that code from the german BlitzMax forum and modified it a bit so it would run on my Mac, but I think this is what the = thing actually means.

HTH,
W.

So you have to provide some kind of internal symbol name, and you can make it up, doesn't have to be predefined format?

My question:

Does anyone see how it may be possible to use the screensaver/screensaver.h framework (and any of the headers that it includes) WITHIN BlitzMax, to use BlitzMax as the compiler, to get it to produce a real Mac screensaver? Aside for all the extra files and folders that a screensaver bundle needs, is it feasible that Blitz could compile the appropriate file with the appropriate code to make it be recognized as a valid screensaver?

It's not required if you use the same function name in Max as you defined in C. e.g

Extern
   Function bmx_CreateThread(threadfunction())
End Extern