Re: defs files

[Tim Janik <timj gtk org>]

On 19 Jan 2000, Havoc Pennington wrote:

> 
> The current defs files are missing lots of information that we might
> like to have, and aren't extensible. I've taken the gtk-doc code and
> changed it to be a more modular gtk-header-file-scanner; it can
> autogenerate (more or less) the current defs file format. However I
> think we need a new format; here is a proposal, based on a proposal
> Elliot made several months ago.
> 
> Elliot's proposal: http://www.gnome.org/mailing-lists/archives/gtk-devel-list/1999-September/0027.shtml
> 
> Proposed format:
> 
>  - the proposed format is totally cumbersome, just remember you don't
>    have to type it in :-) it's machine-generated and made for
>    machine-reading
> 
>  - should have small s-expressions, not deeply nested, because this is
>    easier to parse. the price is duplicate information. For example

hm, i find especially the argument thingy a bit confusing, because you
use the symbol "argument" for GtkArgs and for function arguments.
also on function arguments, you don't specify whether tehy are in or
out, need to be freed etc.
since a bunch of similar discussion has been going on at the end of 1997,
(and the messages don't seem to be online anymore) i dug in my archives
and exported the relevant thread.

attached is a gzipped unix-mail folder containing this thread, you might
find it interesting in regards to argument specifications and object methods.

---
ciaoTJ

gtk.defs.gz