读书笔记

Overview of Plug-in Structure

This section is an overview of basic information you will need as you develop plug-ins.

• Understanding the Plug-in API
• Plug-ins and Platform Independence

Understanding the Plug-in API

A plug-in is a native code library whose source conforms to standard C syntax. The Plug-in Application Programming Interface (API) is made up of two groups of functions and a set of shared data structures.

• Plug-in methods are functions that you implement in the plug-in; Netscape
  Gecko calls these functions. The names of all the plug-in functions in the API begin with NPP_, for example, NPP_New. There are also a couple of functions (i.e., NP_Initialize and NP_Shutdown), that are direct library entry points and not related to any particular plug-in instance.
• Browser methods are functions implemented by Netscape Gecko; the plug-in calls these functions. The names of all the browser functions in the API begin with NPN_, for example, NPN_Write.
• Data structures are plug-in-specific types defined for use in the Plug-in API. The names of structures begin with NP, for example, NPWindow.

All plug-in names in the API start with NP. In general, the operation of all API functions is the same on all platforms. Where this varies, the reference entry for the function in the reference section describes the difference.

Plug-ins and Platform Independence

A plug-in is a dynamic code module that is native to the specific platform on which the browser is running. It is a code library, rather than an application or an applet, and runs only from the browser. Although plug-ins are platform-specific, the Plug-in API is designed to provide the maximum degree of flexibility and to be functionally consistent across all platforms. This guide notes platform-specific differences in coding for the MS Windows, Mac OS, and Unix platforms.

You can use the Plug-in API to write plug-ins that are media type driven and provide high performance by taking advantage of native code. Plug-ins give you an opportunity to seamlessly integrate platform-dependent code and enhance the Netscape Gecko core functionality by providing support for new data types.

The plug-in file type depends on the platform:

• MS Windows: .DLL (Dynamic Link Library) files
• Unix: .SO or .DSO (Shared Objects) files
• Mac OS: PowerPC Shared Library files.