Merging EFLIB phase 1 and GNOME

[Johan Larsson <jola csd uu se>]

Hi Everybody in the EFLIB development community
and the GNOME comminity.


GNOME is a GNU project aiming on establishing a standardized GUI, an
application framework and a suite of desktop applications for the UNIX
and Linux community. See http://www.gnome.org/.

EFLIB is a project aiming on establishing a framework standard for
advanced scientific applications and to increase the productivity in
all software productions. EFLIB focuses on design patterns, language
independence and high performance algorithms. See 
http://www.csd.uu.se/projects/EFLIB/.


Both projects have a lot in common. EFLIB want to support state-
of-the-art object technologies including CORBA and OpenGL. GNOME
share the ambition. EFLIB may be suitable as a support framework
layer to operate under GNOME.

EFLIB try to establish a complete set of reusable software components
through the Object-Pascal language standard. EFLIB targets the UNIX
platform, but will also support Windows NT technology. EFLIB could therefore
prove to be an important bridge between Microsoft standards and more
adequate UNIX technology.

I will give some examples to make all this a little clearer:

1. GNOME has a help system. Moving the text processing to an independent
EFLIB subsystem would give high reusability and an improved fexibility. EFLIB
take care of advanced parsing through state-of-the-art algorithms for pattern
matching. EFLIB provide pluggable subsystems for text conversions, filters, etc.
Thus, GNOME would be easier to customize. A parsing subsystem can easily be
replaced (toolkit design pattern).

| The goal with EFLIB, and most other modern frameworks that incorporate
| design patterns, is to make software reuse flexible and thus efficient in
| software engineering. 

More details about GNOME architecutre: http://www.gnome.org/devel/arch/ 

2. GNOME probably could use CORBA and OpenGL - two technologies that
currentlly EFLIB is shaped up to support. In the long run, both projects
would benefit by balancing the boundaries between platforms (especially
those set up by Microsoft). GNOME could therefore use components written
for the Microsoft platform. Language independence is achieved through CORBA.


Yours Sincerely,

Johan Larsson
Sernanders vag 8:241 -- SE-752 61 UPPSALA -- SWEDEN -- +46-18-460046

jola@csd.uu.se
http://www.csd.uu.se/~jola/


Also, see EFLIB on the Internet at http://www.csd.uu.se/projects/EFLIB/.