Saturday, July 09, 2005
XPCOM and Gecko Plug-Ins: Help?
So, it looks like the interface I currently have a link for (on in my "reference" links on the left) is for the "pre-5.0" plug-in system. Apparently, there's a new system based on "cross-platform component object modules" (XPCOM). This means that it's OO, interface-based, and roundabout ;). Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be very good documentation on how to use the XPCOM system to make a plug-in, so I'm a bit stuck. I was preparing to write a little program to figure out how Mozilla/Firefox's plug-in system works, so that I could better design the SWFIO::Filters::NAPI::Read class.
Does anyone have familiarity with the XPCOM model in Mozilla? Does anyone know of a good reference for writing a plug-in based on this model? If not, I'll do my best to document my own path.
On an unrelated note, I'm going to try and be more regular with my updates. It appears as though folks are actually reading this thing now, and it's rude of me to be too far off in my corner without updating you all on what I'm doing. I'll do my best not to dilute the posts, but I'll also be more forthcoming with the snags I've hit, and the intermediate steps I'm going through.
that's all for now :)
Note: I have been told by someone who recently downloaded the SWF specification that Macromedia has added a restrictive license to the end of the document. Because of this, newcomers will not be able to get a copy of the spec and still be able to contribute to GPLFlash's development. Since other developers (such as myself) already have access to the specification without the license, this should not pose a major problem in the short term. Please bear with us, and do not seek out or use this specification in conjunction with the GPLFlash project.