process-foreign-file source &key dff language preprocess preprocessor preprocessor-options case-sensitive =>
The process-foreign-file
function takes a file or files of foreign declarations -- usually header files -- and parses them, producing `dff' files of Lisp calls to fli:define-foreign-function
, fli:define-foreign-variable
, fli:define-foreign-type
, and so on, providing a Lisp interface to the foreign code.
source gives the name of the header files or file to be processed. The name of a file consists of source-file-name and source-file-type (typically .h
).
dff is an output file which will contain the Lisp foreign function definitions. The default value is nil
, in which case the dff file will be source-file-name -dff.lisp
. (See source , above.)
language specifies the language the header files are written in. Currently the supported languages are :c
(standard K&R C header files) and :ansi-c
.
preprocess , when non- nil
, runs the preprocessor on the input files. The default value is t
.
preprocessor is a string containing the pathname of the preprocessor program. By default this is the value of *preprocessor*.
preprocessor-options is a string containing command line options to be passed to the preprocessor if it is called. By default this is the value of *preprocessor-options*.
case-sensitive specifies whether to maintain case sensitivity in symbol names as in the source files. Values can be:
t
-- the names of all Lisp functions and classes created are of the form |name|. This is the default value.
nil
-- all foreign names are converted to uppercase and an error is signalled if any name clashes occur as a result of this conversion. For example, OneTwoTHREE
becomes ONETWOTHREE
.
:split-name
-- attempts to split the name up into something sensible. For example, OneTwoTHREE
becomes ONE-TWO-THREE
.
:prefix
-- changes lowercase to uppercase and concatenates the string with the string held in sys:*prefix-name-string*
. For example, OneTwoTHREE
becomes FOREIGN-ONETWOTHREE
.
(list :user-routine
function-name )
-- enables you to pass your own function for name formatting. Your function must take a string argument and return a string result. It is not advised to use destructive functions (e.g. nreverse
) as this may cause unusual side effects.
If case-sensitive takes any other value, names are not changed.
Note that in some cases the derived Lisp FLI definitions will not be quite correct, due to an ambiguity in C. char*
can mean a pointer to a character, or a string, and in many cases you will want to pass a string. Therefore, process-foreign-file
is useful for generating prototype FLI definitions, especially when there are many, but you do need to check the results when char*
is used.
register-module
*preprocessor*
*preprocessor-options*
An FLI type which does not have a simple representation in memory and is therefore represented as a "boxed" Lisp object. Arrays, string, structure, and unions are all aggregate types.
A Lisp function, defined with the FLI macro define-foreign-callable
, which can be called from a foreign language.
A coerced pointer is a pointer that is dereferenced with the :type
key in order to return the value pointed to as a different type than specified by the pointer type. For example, a pointer to a byte can be coerced to return a boolean on dereferencing.
The Foreign Language Interface, which consists of the macros, functions, types and variables defined in the fli
package.
Code written in Lisp using the functions, macros and types in the fli
package.
A function in the fli
package used to interface Lisp with a foreign language.
A data type specifier in the fli
package used to define data objects that interface between Lisp and the foreign language. For example, a C long
might be passed to LispWorks through an instance of the FLI type :long
, from which it is transferred to a Lisp integer
.
A Lisp function, defined using the FLI macro define-foreign-function
, which calls a function written in a foreign language. A foreign function contains no body, consisting only of a name and a list of arguments. The function in the foreign language provides the body of the foreign function.
A language to which Lisp can be interfaced using the FLI. Currently the FLI interfaces to C, and therefore also the Win32 API functions.
An FLI type that can be represented within a single register of memory. Immediate types include all integer, floating point, character, byte, and boolean types.
An FLI type consisting of an address and a type specification. A pointer normally points to the memory location of an instance of the type specified, although there might not actually be an allocated instance of the type at the pointer location.
A description of the :wrapper
FLI type which "wraps" around an object, allowing data to be passed to or obtained from the object as though it was of a different type. A wrapper can be viewed as a set of conversion functions defined on the object which are automatically invoked when the wrapped object is accessed.