Here comes XOS

[JonathanC at ag.nsw.gov.au]

Sorry, Xavier, maybe I'm the only one, but I've read your message over and 
over and I'm still not clear what XOS is, or will be. I remember reading 
about it on the HyperCard list years ago, and I couldn't figure it out 
then, either.
Maybe you could give an example or 2 of how it might be used in practice?

I'd LIKE to be enthusiastic about it - honest! :-)

Regards,

Jonathan Cooper
Manager of Information / Website
Art Gallery of New South Wales
Sydney, Australia
http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au

MisterX wrote:
> ...
> So, what is XOS? 
> 
> Just a simple extra OS to manage data across RunRev, your apps, your OS,
> your files, your nets buddies, etc... 
> 
> If there is anything important about data and programs, it's usually the
> data! Well, XOS has a surprise for you, you will see data and making 
data
> programs completely differently soon! At least I hope so ;)
> 
> The big question I've been trying to answer: Is is OOP or not?
> 
> Languagewise, C++ or smalltalk, java or any oop wanabee, no because the
> transcript language doesn't lend itself to oop type of programming. It
> doesn't need to! 
> 
> The message hierarchy?
> 
> This one though is forcedly based on the RunRev messaging which is kind 
of
> OOP. What was missing was/is/will/can be added though but I haven't seen 
the
> need other than for delegation or exception handling in the pure sense 
of
> the term! 
> 
> So what are Objects and how are they based in our "objectual 
orientation"?
> 
> The object-ism in the XOS language is based on different levels at which 
we
> humans contextualize the semantics of the word object. Uh, sorry, the 
object
> in xos just depends on your need. It can be the text, the field, the 
card,
> the stack, the file or the category acoustic or other denominations you
> choose (you can always script more of these!). 
> 
> An object is also a variable word (not a variable although there is a 
logic
> to variable and parameter naming) or a handler's name or part of it! 
Hence
> the object class is any function like createobject or deleteCard, 
readfile,
> finduser, etc... You can instantiate or overide the function but it's 
not
> guaranteed something will happen if no "exceptions" are not handled but 
in
> any case, the function will try to best help you out even if you don't
> furnish the right parameters. 
> 
> Are there classes, Objects, links, indexes, pointers? 
> 
> They simply arent until you create them. These can be property dependent 
or
> based on/in a library.
> 
> The first object I created in xos was the card, uh, the object which is 
a
> card. 
> 
> Concept?
> A card is an object, so is a stack. A word is an object, so is a list.
> Working from there contextually in the programming sense has been the
> foundation for XOS... And the talk of OOP applies nicely in most forms 
which
> was a welcome sign in the book "The Best of Booch". It is about oop 
modeling
> and project development in all stages, his question is whether any 
language
> really differs or embodies the oop phylosophy while differing in 
language.
> And I believe XOS does - OOP has been an inspiration... Lest I script it
> naturally. 
> 
> Inheritance is a nice OOP counter-example which doesn't really apply to 
XOS
> although it is "generalized" into the polymorphismic class "IT" such as
> CreateIt "car", "aproperty","avalue". 
> 
> The conversion to MC from HC is strange because it opens many doors. One
> them is templates... But Im now faced with a nice distributed system 
that
> might have to redistribute itself... ;)
> 
> To all those that have supported my efforts in the past, here comes my
> best...
> 
> The script behind XOS? ;)
> 
> In the beginning, 
> There was an object
> More started becoming
> Soon it was a project
> 
> What was a list too big
> Could be picked by a script
> So any could read or dig
> one needle or a ship
> 
> More on this OOP talk later... I hope to put in some quotes from "The 
Best
> of Booch" to exemplify the Object orientedness of XOS and RR in the 
right
> context. 
> ...


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