Patchcords

[Adam Ierymenko <api axiom choice net>]

I sent this once before but I don't think it made it through...

Anyway, I have an idea for how the same level of functionality that is
available from the command line using pipes to link small applications
together could be integrated into a GUI environment.

I was thinking that the use of pipes on the command line to link applicaions
in a chain together reminds me of the way you would use "patch cords" to
link old audio equipment together.  For example, you might run a patch cord
from your keyboard to a mixer to an amp etc...  Well, imagine if applicaions
had icons on them that looked like an old phono jack and there was somewhere
on the desktop a box of "patch cords."  You could link applicaions together
on the desktop by dragging a patchcord out of the box, plugging one end into
one application, and then dragging the patch cord over to the other
application and plugging the other end in.  I can even imagine this being
integrated with MIME so that the jacks in applications would have a MIME
type associated with them indicated what type of data they sent or received.
It could even be made.. gasp.. network aware!

For example, imagine that you want to run the output of.. say.. an MP3 player
into a graphics program like Cthugha.  The MP3 player could have an
"audio/x-wav" output jack and Cthugha could have an "audio/x-wav" input
jack.  You would grab a patchcord out of the box and just connect the two.
Then when you hit play on the mp3 player Cthugha would receive a stream of
audio data via it's input plug.

I don't mind if you use this.. just give credit where credit is due. :)

P.S. I don't really have time to code this myself, so I'm just throwing this
out in case anyone else wants to pick it up.