RE: [Axiom-developer] Re: [build Axiom] updated Windows buildinstructions

[Page, Bill]

Ralf, 

On Thursday, September 21, 2006 11:27 AM you wrote:
> 
> On 09/21/2006 04:55 PM, Page, Bill wrote:
> >>    echo "draw(...)" | axiom > picture.ps
> 
> > Yes, all you need is to be using a machine that has X11
> > installed.
> 
> Thank you, Bill. I really thought that it would have been
> easier.
> 
> Does somebody know why X11 is required?

Yes of course. There has been a long ongoing discussion about
how best to implement Hyperdoc and Axiom Graphics on Windows
because of this issue. X11 is required because both HyperDoc
and Axiom Graphics call X11 library functions directly when
creating windows and drawing to the screen.

> Axiom was also sold on Windows if I am not completely wrong.

You are correct.

> How did NAG produce graphics there?

NAG integrated two new packages for Axiom on Windows - one
called OpenInventor (for graphics) and the other Techexplorer
(a latex-cable browser to replace Hyperdoc). Both of these
packages were proprietary at the time Axiom was made open
source but now they are (more or less) open.

OpenInventor is now called 'Coin3d'. See:

http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/axiom-developer/2006-09/msg00201.html

and the related threads:

http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/cgi-bin/namazu.cgi?query=openinventor&submit=Search%21&idxname=axiom-developer&max=20&result=normal&sort=date%3Alate

http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/cgi-bin/namazu.cgi?query=Techexplorer&submit=Search%21&idxname=axiom-developer&max=10&result=normal&sort=date%3Alate

For Techexplorer

http://lists.nongnu.org/archive/html/axiom-developer/2004-08/msg00069.html

http://www.integretechpub.com/products/techexplorer


> 
> I quickly looked at src/algebra/view2D.spad but I could not 
> see anything related to X. Since I have no idea what
> 
>    VIEW    ==> VIEWPORTSERVER$Lisp
> 
> refers to, I am out of business. :-(

This is part of the communications interface between Axiom and
Axiom Graphics. Axiom Graphics is a separate program written in
"C" that does all of the interaction with X11. AXIOMsys (which
is the program that runs the code at which you are looking) sends
commands to Axiom Graphics via a session socket.

> But I really really wonder, why X is a must for draw and/or
> write. Does Axiom (through LISP) call some functions from X?
> 

No, not directly. Only by sending a command to another process
that does that work.

Regards,
Bill Page.