Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!hplabs!hp-pcd!hpcvlx!ben From: ben@hpcvlx.HP.COM (Benjamin Ellsworth) Newsgroups: comp.windows.x Subject: Re: Gadgets in Motif Message-ID: <100920101@hpcvlx.HP.COM> Date: 17 Aug 89 18:01:16 GMT References: <322.8908161255@jupiter.cmi.no> Organization: Hewlett-Packard Co., Corvallis, OR, USA Lines: 39 > Is the advantage converting a Widget into a functionally equilavalent > Gadget primarily speed, memory savings or both? Primarily memory, however any time you get smaller on a virtual memory platform you also get faster -- the classical Speed vs. Size tradeoff is simply not accurate on most systems anymore. A gadget can be designed to carry only the minimum data neccessary to perform its function. All of the "shadow" window data (normally carried in and supported from core) can be eliminated. Gadgets allow both the client and the window server to be smaller and faster. > Is this a Motif-only toolkit extension? The idea is not new or unique with OSF. HP did them (the idea is at least as old as the XRay toolkit on X10), DEC did them (although to hear them talk about it you'd think theirs were the first, the best or the only), SPC did them, a couple of universities did them in the course of other work, and I don't know who else but I'm sure a lot of others did them also. Eliminating uneeded window overhead is an obvious enhancement to the original Xt Intrinsics design. Everybody, to the best of my knowledge, did them slightly differently. The OSF Motif gadgets follow a particular design policy which I'm sure OSF considers either copyrighted or a "trade secret" so I won't elaborate on it. If you want to build your own gadgets, either buy a OSF Motif source license and extend the current gadget set or create your own style of windowless objects. The latter may take some careful enhancements to the Xt Intrinsics. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Benjamin Ellsworth | ben@cv.hp.com | INTERNET Hewlett-Packard Company | {backbone}!hplabs!hp-pcd!ben | UUCP 1000 N.E. Circle | (USA) (503) 750-4980 | FAX Corvallis, OR 97330 | (USA) (503) 757-2000 | VOICE ----------------------------------------------------------------------- All relevant disclaimers apply. -----------------------------------------------------------------------