Is this project possible?

[Benji Smith]

Vladimir Panteleev wrote:
> On Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:59:11 +0300, Benji Smith 
> <dlanguage at benjismith.net> wrote:
> 
>> The client library needs to expose a C interface, so that it can be 
>> embedded into any application (with thin wrappers for Java, .Net, 
>> python, etc), and it'll need to be targetted to Windows and Linux 
>> (and, eventually, to Mac OSX).
> 
> Have you considered placing the bulk of the code in an external process, 
> and writing a simple C library to launch and communicate with it? 
> Although this adds bulk, it does have several advantages - it takes away 
> the GC problems, and also allows your framework to finalize successfully 
> in the event of a crash or unexpected termination of the host application.

I've thought about it.

But consider yourself the application consumer. You've just purchased a 
new piece of software, and the first time you launch it, your firewall 
notifies you that "StatisticalCollectionAgent.exe is requesting access 
to the internet".

You're not happy.

Not because you necessarily mind the reporting of some anonymous stats, 
especially if your software vendor shows you a disclaimer and lets you 
opt out. But having a 3rd party process do the reporting looks fishy, 
under any circumstances. It's not something you yourself installed, or 
have even ever heard of. Is it malware? Is it a virus?

Much better if "MyFeedReader.exe" communicates directly with 
"myfeedreader.com".

That's why I'm pretty adamant that the code must run in-process.

It'll make the code a little trickier, but I think the improved user 
experience will make it worthwhile it in the long-run.

--benji