Re: Interfacing ActiveX/COM-objects "natively" in Emacs

[David Kastrup]

Mathias Dahl <address@hidden> writes:

> Basically, what I need is "only" to instantiate different
> ActiveX/COM-objects and use the methods and properties they provide,
> not the VBScript programming language itself.
>
> I remember reading about someone trying to make Emacs an
> ActiveX-object, and although that sounds interesting, this is not
> what I think is needed here. I also remember seeing that Python has
> some module that is capable of doing ActiveX-work.
>
> OK, enough blabbing, here is my question: what would be needed to
> make it possible doing this more "natively" from Emacs? Is it
> possible without rewriting major parts of Emacs?

Quite likely.  It does not sound like much would be required here.

> Would it be possible to do using some "plug-in" dll? Is anyone else
> besides be interested in it? In my opinion, it would be quite useful
> for accessing Windows-specific things like Registry data, automating
> "ActiveX-enabled" software (both proprietary and Free).

Obviously the definite person to provide an answer to this question
would be Richard Stallman.  To save him some effort, since all the
material for the answer has been discussed several times, I'll outline
the answer to this as I understand it will be, and he can just correct
what I have got wrong.

First, the priority of Emacs as part of the GNU project is to promote
freedom and the GNU project.  That means that it will not gain any
significant features that promote the use of Windows over GNU/Linux as
a platform for running Emacs.  The only passing chance to get an
ActiveX interface at all would be if there was equivalent
functionality already available with the Gtk+ and possibly other
platforms.  I would not bet on it.

For another, it has already been decided that Emacs will not get a
generic interface to call binary modules, in order not to make it
legally feasible to employ it as a tightly coupled component in
basically unfree systems.  This argument would seem to apply also to
ActiveX components.

Note that this just concerns the core Emacs distribution: such
facilities will not get added there.  Anybody that wants to implement
and employ such interfaces for his own private use is still free to do
so.  And such an extension to Emacs can easily be distributed under
the GPL.

Note that this is just my own understanding of the matter, and I am
not the person to convince here, anyway.

Hope this helps,

-- 
David Kastrup, Kriemhildstr. 15, 44793 Bochum