outside: generic API support for the Go language (PRERELEASE)

A neat way to connect to Windows DLLs

To display a simple message box using outside

		import (
			"github.com/tHinqa/outside"
			T "github.com/tHinqa/outside/types"
		)
		type (
			HWND        uint32
			MSGBOX_TYPE uint32
		)
		var MessageBox func(
			w HWND, text, caption T.VString, t MSGBOX_TYPE) int
		outside.AddDllApis("user32.dll", true,
			Apis{{"MessageBoxW", &MessageBox}})
		defer outside.DoneOutside()

		MessageBox(0, "Hello World", "Go says...", 0)

or the equivalent in barebones Go code

		import (
			"syscall"
			"unsafe"
		)
		dll := syscall.MustLoadDLL("user32.dll")
		defer dll.Release()
		messagebox := dll.MustFindProc("MessageBoxW")

		text, _ := syscall.UTF16PtrFromString("Hello World")
		utext := (uintptr)(unsafe.Pointer(text))
		caption, _ := syscall.UTF16PtrFromString("Go says...")
		ucaption := (uintptr)(unsafe.Pointer(caption))

		messagebox.Call(0, utext, ucaption, 0)

Fire off quick questions to @tHinqa on Twitter

Features

• Maintains type-safety while adding type-flexibility
• Uses reflect.MakeFunc to build bindings
• Automates marshalling
• Covered by the same licence conditions as Go is
• API functions can be declared to include or exclude error returns

Includes DLL entry-points for

MSWindows in outside/win32; to register them include

		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32"

or any combination of

		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/advapi32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/avicap32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/avifil32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/comctl32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/comdlg32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/gdi32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/gdiplus"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/glu32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/kernel32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/mapi32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/mpr"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/netapi32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/ole32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/oleaut32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/opengl32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/pdh"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/riched20"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/shdocvw"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/shell32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/user32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/winmm"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/ws2_32"
		import _ "github.com/tHinqa/outside/win32/wsock32"

Includes DLL entry-points and API definitions for

SDL2 (Simple DirectMedia Layer) in outside/sdl2

Separate repository of API definitions for

MSWindows in outside-windows

Separate repository of DLL entry-points and API definitions for

GTK in outside-gtk2

libXML2 in outside-xml2

sqlite3 in outside-sqlite3 Includes database/sql/driver implementation based on the one in mattn/go-sqlite3 [2]

Bugs and missing functionality

Version go1.1.2 reflect Convert corrupts 64-bit return values (on windows 386 at least). It's fixed in go1.2rc1.

Examples

• outside/sdl2/spriteminimal - Translation of testspriteminimal.c [1] from the Simple DirectMedia Layer development library. Needs sdl2.dll (supplied in outside/sdl2) to run.

Credits

[1] SDL source is Copyright 1997-2013 Sam Lantinga

[2] mattn/go-sqlite3 is Copyright 2012-2013 Yasuhiro Matsumoto