VX-REXX Object Development Kit

An add-on package for VX-REXX that allows you to build dynamic link libraries that extend the VX-REXX package. Initially when VX-REXX was released the expectation was that if you wanted to extend the functionality of the base package you would use SOM objects created in any language with a direct-to-SOM capability, however there was little experience of that in the development community and Watcom got repeated requests for a more conventional SDK which they delivered with this package.

The VX-REXX Object Development Kit (ODK) is delivered in the form of a C library, a simple management package for VX-REXX and associated headers etc., it supports both the creation of extensions using a DLL and packing the more traditional SOM based objects into a DLL for use as an extension, the resulting packaged objects then appear in the VX REXX tools window and can be used in the same way as VX-REXX's pre-defined objects.

You start a new object library in the same way you create a new VX-REXX project by dragging a project template, answering several questions and the Object Development Kit then generates all the necessary header files, SOM class files and library files needed to build and link the object library to VX-REXX's development environment. The new class browser allows developers to easily view and modify the SOM class hierarchy instead of directly editing SOM class files.

Versions

 * 2.0 (1995-03-23) vxodk.zip
 * 2.1 (1995-08-29)
 * This version introduces Notebooks, Containers, Sliders, Pop-up menus and DDE objects, there may have been later a fixpack release for this release, but we have not been able to find any information on it.


 * Prerequisites
 * A compatible C compiler including:
 * IBM C Set++ for OS/2 v2.1 or later
 * Watcom C/C++
 * OS/2 Developer's Toolkit 2.1 or later

Licence and availability
Discontinued commercial software, originally had a retail price of US$ 199, the company announced in April 1996 that it would no longer develop the package as the developer resources were being moved to Optima++ and on March the first 1998 withdrew this alongside the VX-REXX package itself from sale altogether.

Publisher

 * Watcom