Conference bulova::decw_jan-89_to_nov-90

There is a discussion going in the OSF conference (SSGBPM::OSF) on this issue.

Some of us in the field have sought ways to run Motif on our workstations because
our customers are demanding it RIGHT NOW.  I have installed the Motif toolkit
and I have since been playing with it (for about a week now).  I really don't
see any need in going back to DECwindows at all!

As an example, I am writing this note with a Motif application (ULTRIX Xnotes).
Thanx to Matt Thomas ;^).

The binary license for Motif is only $40.

I pray that DECwindows Engineering move swiftly with regards to a Motif
migration path.

Kris..

Here is some info that OSF ships with Motif.

I hope this helps.

Kris..

......................

			XUI API CHANGES


	INTRODUCTION
	============
	The Motif Toolkit is a hybrid of Digital's XUI
	Toolkit	and Hewlett-Packard's X Widgets.  One
	of OSF's stated objectives for the hybrid was to
	attempt to preserve the API provided by the XUI toolkit.  
	Obviously, since OSF wanted a hybrid toolkit with significant 
	new functionality, some API changes were inevitable.

	The purpose of this document is to try to point out 
	those areas in which the Motif toolkit is significantly
	different from the XUI toolkit.  Note that in many
	areas the Motif toolkit provides functionality beyond
	that present in XUI but which does not conflict with the 
	XUI API.  This document only addresses those areas where 
	functionality present in XUI has been changed or is not 
	present in Motif.

	This document will be updated as needed during the course
	of the Mofif Toolkit effort.  Its purpose is to help
	those developers who already have significant applications
	on XUI to move those applications, as painlessly as
	possible, to the Motif toolkit.


	AREAS OF DIFFERENCE
	===================
	For specifics on all of the items listed below see the
	appropriate chapter of the External Specification and 
	the component man pages.  

	1) In all cases, the "Dwt" prefix from XUI and the "Xw"
	prefix from X Widgets have been replaced by a more vendor 
	neutral, "Xm" (X Motif).  This is true for function calls, 
	resources, callback names, etc.  Also, resource and define 
	names have been changed to bring names more into line with 
	the naming conventions set out in the Xt Intrinsics manual.  
	For example, previously XUI pushbuttons supported a callback 
	reason	called "DwtCRArm", this becomes "XmCR_ARM".  Given 
	the number of name changes it is simply more useful to refer
        to the External Specification and Man pages than to attempt
	to repeat all of that data here.

	2) The XUI "high-level" create functions for each
	widget (i.e., DwtLabelCreate) have no counterpart in Motif. 
	Motif supports 2 methods of widget creation:

		-First, a functional interface equivalent to XUI's
		"low-level" create function:

		  XmCreateLabel(parent,name,arglist,argcount);

		-Second, the standard Xt Intrinsics/X Widget's
		create function:

		  XtCreateWidget(name,widget_class,parent,
				arglist,argcount);

	3) There is no Motif counterpart to the XUI Help widget,
	Help Shell or help subsystem.

	4) The class hierarchy has been changed to support 
	the other changes desired by OSF.  These changes 
	should only affect those application writers who 
	have developed new widgets.

	5) A set of 3D visual resources have replaced the
	visual resources of the XUI widgets.

	6) A general model of resolution independence
	replaces the resolution independence scheme in the
	XUI dialog layer.  All components in Motif will
	support resolution independence.

	7) The compound string functionality that was in
	XUI has been altered to present a more vendor
	neutral scheme as well as expanded application
	functionality.

	8) A general model of keyboard traversal replaces
	the keyboard traversal scheme in the XUI dialog
	layer.  Keyboard traversal will follow the Presentation
	Manager model and will be available in all components
	including menus.

	9) The MenuBar variation of RowColumn will require
	that all of its children be homogeneous.

	10) Names of many widgets have been changed.  At a minimum
	all widget class names are now prefaced with "Xm". The 
	following list contrasts the appropriate XUI widget create 
	function with its Motif counterpart for those widget's
	whose name has changed. Note that the create functions now 
	more closely conform to the verb-noun of the Xt Intrinsics 
	widget create function:

	DwtAttachedDBCreate	XmCreateForm
	DwtAttachedDBPopupCreate  XmCreateFormDialog
	DwtCautionBoxCreate	XmCreateWarningDialog
	DwtCommandWindowCreate	XmCreateCommand
	DwtDialogBoxCreate	XmCreateBulletinBoard
	DwtDialogBoxPopupCreate	XmCreateBulletinBoardDialog
	DwtFileSelectionCreate	XmCreateFileSelectionDialog
	DwtListBoxCreate	XmCreateList
	DwtMenuCreate		XmCreateRowColumn
	DwtPullDownMenuEntryCreate  XmCreateCascadeButton
	DwtScrollWindowCreate	XmCreateScrolledWindow
	DwtSelectionCreate	XmCreateSelectionBox
	DwtSTextCreate		XmCreateText
	DwtWindowCreate		XmCreateDrawingArea
	DwtWorkBoxCreate	XmCreateWorkingDialog


	11) XmCommand (DwtCommandWindow) has been changed so
	that all textual data is input in the form of XmString
	data (Compound Strings) rather than a mix of char*
	and Compound String data.  This means that the
	"XmNcommand" resource (in XUI "DwtNvalue") takes
	XmString data rather than char*.

This is a very "high level" list.  We helped them generate a much more
detailed list, but I haven't seen it appear anywhere on the "kit" yet.

Leo

>This is a very "high level" list.  We helped them generate a much more
>detailed list, but I haven't seen it appear anywhere on the "kit" yet.

>Leo

Leo,

thanx for the comment ;^)

what is your group doing to provide this info to developers and field techies
so we can show our committment to Motif..or maybe, it is not even your respon-
sibility.....no?

Why should the good work that you folks put out go to "strangers" first?
At least, make us all have the information at the same time.

Kris.

HP and OSF are supposed to provide the "list".  We have provided feedback
based on the spec, and other things we've "discovered" while playing with
Motif.  All that I have is a first pass at a list that we made MANY
corrections/additions to (back to OSF).  I don't have anything close to
up-to-date.

I will ask our people that talk to OSF to find out why the detailed list
is not on the "kit".

Leo

I didn't know where to put this question, so I try it here...

The problem:

We have to do an investigation for a customer what it takes (actions and
effort) to port their application from a HP UNIX system to a VAX/VMS
platform. 
At the moment they use the HP window system (don't know the exact name) 
and they want to use OSF/Motif.

Does anybody have any ideas or can point me to somewhere else?

Thanks 

Renate

There are few features that HP widgets have which the Motif widgets don't.
But mostly its just converting resources names (XtNmumbleFratz to XmNfooBar)
and changing the Widget calls (HP has UIL so you don't have to worry about
it unless you want to use UIL).

Menus are handled differently (they are sinpler under Motif) but it's mostly
slogging through the man pages...

Your most anooying changes will be to use the Motif compound functions instead
of the ISO Latin 1 string which the HP widgets use.

I converted XNotes (~8000 lines of code, 90% HP widgets and 10% Athena) to 100%
Motif in about 40 man-hours.  This figure may or may not reflect normal reality
as I know XNotes inside and out and had the HP & Motif widget sources to go
look things up (this was a *big* help).

    re .2 
>	4) The class hierarchy has been changed to support the other
> 	changes desired by OSF.These changes should only affect those
> 	application writers who have developed new widgets.
    
    An ISV that I am working with has done this and I would like to
    let him know the implications of these changes before he finds
    out through another source.Are there any more details??
    
    regards Mark