1. Ole4D Plug-in presentation Author: CLS Data Pro http://www.clsdatapro.com mailto:support@clsdatapro.com

2. Ole4D overview What is Ole4D? What is Ole4D? Bridge between 4D enviroment and ActiveX/Ole objects Bridge between 4D enviroment and ActiveX/Ole objects Embeds ActiveX/Ole objects in a 4D form Embeds ActiveX/Ole objects in a 4D form

3. Introducing ActiveX Controls ActiveX controls are reusable software components ActiveX controls are reusable software components Can quickly add specialized functionality to applications Can quickly add specialized functionality to applications Are based on an architecture for developing programmable software components Are based on an architecture for developing programmable software components ActiveX controls are small, fast, and powerful, and make it easy to integrate and reuse software components ActiveX controls are small, fast, and powerful, and make it easy to integrate and reuse software components

4. How Ole4D works ActiveX/Ole Object 4th Dimension Application Ole4D Plug-in Ole4D methods 4D events/notifications Plug-in API calls Calls to the object functions Calls to the plug-in functions 4D plug-in API OLE specifications

5. Communication between 4D and ActiveX/Ole 4D methods calls and notifications are dispatched to the Ole object by the plug-in 4D methods calls and notifications are dispatched to the Ole object by the plug-in When an event occurs the Ole object notifies the plug-in to call the 4D method associated to the event, if any When an event occurs the Ole object notifies the plug-in to call the 4D method associated to the event, if any

6. How comunication works Interaction between the plug-in and the Ole object is defined by the OLE specifications Interaction between the plug-in and the Ole object is defined by the OLE specifications 4D and the plug-in comunicate using 4D plug-in API 4D and the plug-in comunicate using 4D plug-in API

7. Example 4D Enviroment Read a property of the Ole object by calling OCGetLongProp erty Ole4D plug-in ActiveX/Ole Object Call IDispatch:Invoke to retrieve the value of the property 4D Plug-in APIOle Interfaces

8. Plug-in features Create and embed OLE objects Create and embed OLE objects Allow in place activation saving the object to blob Allow in place activation saving the object to blob Positioning of the OLE object toolbar Positioning of the OLE object toolbar Assign 4D functions as event handlers for OLE object events, providing access to parameters Assign 4D functions as event handlers for OLE object events, providing access to parameters Enable/disable showing ole object menu Enable/disable showing ole object menu Run VB Script from 4D using an interpreter Run VB Script from 4D using an interpreter Retrieve value of VB Script variables in 4D create OLE objects linked to a file Retrieve value of VB Script variables in 4D create OLE objects linked to a file

9. Adding special functionality to a 4D application Use a plug-in designed only for that feature Use a plug-in designed only for that feature Use the Ole4D plug-in Use the Ole4D plug-in

10. Why use Ole4D ? 1. ActiveX/Ole objects are widelly available 1. ActiveX/Ole objects are widelly available There are a lot of ActiveX objects installed by Windows that can be used to access OS features There are a lot of ActiveX objects installed by Windows that can be used to access OS features Many applications have a corresponding ActiveX/Ole object that can be included using the plug-in in a 4th Dimension form Many applications have a corresponding ActiveX/Ole object that can be included using the plug-in in a 4th Dimension form Due to the large market, the ActiveX/Ole objects usually have low costs Due to the large market, the ActiveX/Ole objects usually have low costs

11. Why use Ole4D ? 2. Other development advantages There are ActiveX/Ole objects for solving a wide range of problems There are ActiveX/Ole objects for solving a wide range of problems Saves development effort for a custom plug-in Saves development effort for a custom plug-in Control applications from 4D environment Control applications from 4D environment