Tabax Plugin API

From Axaptapedia

Plugin API is supported by Tabax from version 0.3

Contents 1 goals 2 what is plugin 3 what plugin can do 4 example

[edit] goals

Provide users of tabax some methods to modify it without changing it's source code.

[edit] what is plugin

Plugin is a class with name starting with the 'TabaxPlugin_' prefix and which has a 'tabax' property

Tabax enumerates such classes and sets the 'tabax' property to itself (see 'attachPlugins' method of the 'Tabax' form)

[edit] what plugin can do

When Tabax sets the 'tabax' property of plugin it can modify it behaviour by:

• subscribing to events
• using methods of tabax

For ease of use available events and utility methods are in the TabaxPluginBase class. Tabax service methods are in the Tabax abstract class.

[edit] example

Tabax plugin SDK contains an example of plugin, which modifys default behaviour of Tabax input box the following way: if you input a string like "hello <some word>" it outputs to the infolog Hello, <some word>

Source code:

/// Hello world plugin for tabax
class TabaxPlugin_Hello extends TabaxPluginBase
{
}
/// method 'connected' is defined in the TabaxPluginBase
/// it is called after tabax have loaded the plugin and after setting
/// the 'tabax' property of the plugin
void connected()
{
;
    // the utility macro #subscribe is defined in the TabaxPluginBase
    // when plugin is compiles, this code is substitutes by:
    // tabax.subscribe(methodStr(TabaxPluginBase, beforeStringInput), this);
    #subscribe(beforeStringInput)
}
/// This method will be called when user inputs a string in the edit control of 
/// Tabax. String inputed is in the _string parameter 
/// If plugin wants tabax not to perform the standard behavoiur, this method
/// should return true
boolean beforeStringInput(Tabax _tabax, str _string)
{
    #define.prefix("hello ")
    // if _string starts with "hello "
    if (substr(_string, 1, strLen(#prefix))==#prefix)
    {
        // show greeting
        info("Hello, "+subStr(_string, strLen(#prefix)+1,
            strLen(_string) - strLen(#prefix)));
        // skip standard behavour 
        return true;
    }
    // otherwise: pervorm standard behavour
    return false;
}