Steps to Modularity - Projects

Andrew C. Greenberg werdna at gate.net
Tue Mar 16 06:52:04 UTC 1999


So if projects are now to be entirely independent contexts, not only 
with respect to Display but also the system state, is it now too 
radical to propose the following:

	Optionally permit the VM to assign projects
	each to their own native OS Window, the default being
	the present "stacking" on a single screen.  Selecting
	a new window creates a context shift from one project
	to another.

For machines not running on modern GUI systems, the status-quo as a 
special case operates just fine.  On the other hand, for those with 
modern GUI's, this provides an interesting model for a 
machine-independent windowing facility.

This might go a long way toward assuaging those who have been 
advocating for a more "system" based focus, while assuring and 
maintaining Squeak's pixel for pixel identicality across platforms.

An interesting aside is that this model suggests that different 
projects may well want (or need) to be able to intercommuncate. 
Since they share, at least, the machine's own disk and related 
resources as a mechanism to do that, perhaps it may be prudent to 
think of a more natural mechanism for efficiently facilitating 
inter-project communication as a matter of course?

Just rambling with another view,
Andy





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