Preface

This book describes the Common Desktop Environment (CDE) components, commands, and error messages of the ToolTalk^TM service.

In-depth information about the functionality of the ToolTalk service in general is beyond the scope of this book. That is, CDE ToolTalk Messaging Overview does not describe ToolTalk APIs or commands, or other ToolTalk functionality not specifically related to this release of the ToolTalk service for the Common Desktop Environment.

Who Should Use This Book

This manual is for developers who create or maintain applications that use the ToolTalk service to inter-operate with other applications in Common Desktop Environment. This manual assumes familiarity with the ToolTalk service and its functionality, UNIX^TM operating system commands, system administrator commands, and system terminology.

How This Book Is Organized

This book is organized as follows:

Chapter 1, Introducing the ToolTalk Service, describes how the ToolTalk service works and how it uses information that your application supplies to deliver messages; how applications use the ToolTalk service; and application and ToolTalk components.

Chapter 2, How to Use ToolTalk Messaging , contains the information you need to write an application using the ToolTalk service in the Common Desktop Environment, including the kinds of ToolTalk toolkit messages that need to be included in your application in order for it to inter-operate with other ToolTalk-aware Common Desktop Environment-compliant applications.

Chapter 3, Using TTSnoop to Debug Messages and Patterns, describes how to create and send custom-constructed ToolTalk messages, and also how to selectively monitor any or all ToolTalk messages.

Chapter 4, Using ToolTalk Tracing, describes how a ToolTalk pattern matches and delivers every message ttsession sees.

Appendix A, The Messaging Toolkit, describes some of the application program interface (API functions) that are a part of the messaging toolkit.

Appendix B, The CoEd Demonstration Program, gives the ToolTalk-related portions of the ptype, header, and .c files of the ToolTalk demo program CoEd.

Appendix C, New ToolTalk Functions , describes the ToolTalk functions that map filenames between local and canonical paths.

Related Books and Other Documentation

CDE ToolTalk Messaging Overview does not provide in-depth information about ToolTalk and its functionality. In addition to the ToolTalk product base documentation (that is, ToolTalk User's Guide and the ToolTalk Reference Manual), the following related ToolTalk documentation provide in-depth information about the ToolTalk functionality that is beyond the scope of this book:

• The ToolTalk Service - An Inter-Operability Solution(Published by SunSoft Press/PTR Prentice Hall, ISBN 013-088717-X)

  This book describes ToolTalk and its functionality in depth, and is appropriate for all platforms to which ToolTalk has been ported.

• ToolTalk and Open Protocols (Published by SunSoft Press/PTR Prentice Hall, ISBN 013-031055-7)

  This book describes how to create and develop open protocols for applications that use a messaging service to communicate with other applications. The general principles described in this book provide an application with the flexibility required for users to easily interchange tools.

• ToolTalk Message Sets

  • ToolTalk Desktop Services Message Set

    These conventions apply to any tools in a POSIX or X11 environment. In addition to standard messages for these environments, the Desktop conventions define data types and error codes that apply to all of the ToolTalk inter-client conventions.

  • ToolTalk Document and Media Exchange Message Set

    Allows a tool to be a container for arbitrary media, or to be a media player/editor that can be driven from such a container.

  • CASE Inter-Operability Message Set

    An open specification defining abstract, framework-neutral message interfaces for CASE set-up by Sunsoft, DEC, and SGI. This work has been merged with HP's CASE Communique work, which defined message interfaces for HP's SoftBench Broadcast Message Server framework, and was submitted as a joint draft to ANSI X3H6. More information on the draft X3H6 standard can be retrieved from ftp.netcom.com, in /pub/X3H6; or you can contact:

    X3 Secretariat

    Computer and Business Equipment Manufactures Assoc

    1250 Eye St NW

    Washington DC 20005-3922

    Telephone: (202) 737-8888 (press `1' twice)

    Fax: (202) 638-4922 or (202) 628-2829