f9bdb44b34
patch by unknown@simplemachines.org r=timeless rs=brendan git-svn-id: svn://10.0.0.236/trunk@185269 18797224-902f-48f8-a5cc-f745e15eee43
493 lines
14 KiB
HTML
493 lines
14 KiB
HTML
<HTML>
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<HEAD>
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<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
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<META NAME="Author" CONTENT="Jack Palevich mailto:palevich@netscape.com">
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<META NAME="GENERATOR" CONTENT="Mozilla/4.0b4 [en] (WinNT; I) [Netscape]">
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<TITLE>Composer Plug-in SDK Release Notes</TITLE>
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</HEAD>
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<BODY TEXT="#000000" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" LINK="#0000FF" VLINK="#FF0000" ALINK="#000088">
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<H1>
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Composer Plug-in SDK Release Notes</H1>
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<DT>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>Copyright (C) 1997 Netscape Communications, Inc. All
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Rights Reserved</FONT></DT>
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<DT>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>Version 26</FONT></DT>
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<DT>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>4/29/97</FONT></DT>
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<DT>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>Jack Palevich x6701 <A HREF="mailto:palevich@netscape.com">palevich@netscape.com</A></FONT></DT>
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<H2>
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Introduction</H2>
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The Composer Plug-in SDK allows you to develop plug-ins for Netscape Composer.
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Please refer to the on-line documentation, the sample plugins, and the
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<A HREF="http://developer.netscape.com/library/documentation/communicator/composer/plugin/index.htm">developer's
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guide</A> for more information.
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<H2>
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What's New</H2>
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Version 26 (For Netscape Communicator 4.0PR4)
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Added a new method, public static void Document.editDocument(String
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documentURL). This method lets you open an arbitrary URL for editing. This
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method is asynchronous. It does not return any status. You can use it to
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programatically open an arbitrary URL for editing by the user. You don't
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even have to be in a Composer Plug-in when you call the method. You can
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call it from an applette, or JavaScript, or wherever.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added a sample plug-in, EditHomePage, that shows how to use Document.editDocument.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added a sample plug-in, RedirectTest, that shows how to redirect "edit"
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requests.</LI>
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<LI>
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You must now use JDK 1.1, or a JDK 1.1 compatable IDE such as Symantec
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Cafe 1.5.1 with the 1.1 Preview, to develop Composer Plug-ins.</LI>
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<LI>
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Removed fakejava.zip -- it is not needed now that JDK 1.1 is required.</LI>
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<LI>
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Updated the DocInfo and IFCTest samples to use the JDK 1.1 standard
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API for ResourceBundles and Character.IsWhiteSpace.</LI>
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<LI>
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Updated the AddButton sample to ask for the UniversalConnect privilege.
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(This principle is required in order to read from a URL.)</LI>
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<LI>
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Note that JDK 1.1 will issue deprecated interface warnings when compiling
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some of the samples. If you attempt to fix these warnings, you may run
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into trouble. The reason is that some of the new JDK 1.1 methods (especially
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new features of AWT 1.1) are not supported by Communicator 4.0. When in
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doubt, stick to AWT 1.0 features.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 25
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Two new methods have been added to Document: getText and setText. These
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convenience methods allow you to get and set the whole raw HTML text of
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the document. This makes it easier to write Composer Plug-ins that perform
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operations on the raw HTML text.</LI>
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<LI>
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The EditRaw and IFCTest sample plug-ins have been updated to use Document.getText
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and Document.setText. About 10 lines were saved in each sample.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 24 (For Netscape Communicator 4.0 PR3)
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<UL>
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<LI>
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You can now create and use jar files instead of zip files to hold your
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Composer Plug-in classes. Using .zip files will continue to work. However,
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the benefits of jar files are:</LI>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Since they don't end in .zip, users won't be tempted to unzip them.</LI>
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<LI>
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They are clearly identified as Java files, rather than generic archive
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files.</LI>
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<LI>
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They can be compressed. (However, this feature is not working for Composer
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4.0 PR3.)</LI>
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<LI>
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They can be signed. For more information, look at the Java signing
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and security release notes for PR3.</LI>
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</UL>
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<LI>
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Communicator 4.0 has a new security model for Java code. When you want
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to do something special, you ask the netscape security manager for permission.
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It, in turn, asks the user for permission. If the user grants you the permission,
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your code is free perform the action.</LI>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The AddApplet and AddButton sample Composer Plug-ins have been enhanced
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to use this new security model.</LI>
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<LI>
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The Composer Plug-in kit's classes.zip file now includes a stub version
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of the class netscape.security.SecurityManager. This will allow you to
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use your existing Java development environment to write code that calls
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the SecurityManager.</LI>
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<LI>
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If your plug-in needs to read or write files, or load a dynamic library,
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or otherwise do something that might be dangerous, you will have to upgrade
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to this new security model.For more information, look at the Java signing
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and security release notes for PR3.</LI>
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</UL>
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<LI>
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The pre-built sample plug-ins, cpTest.jar, now come as a jar file instead
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of a zip file.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 23
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The bug where the plug-in's window comes up behind the Composer's window
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has been fixed. The fix is for plug-ins to call requestFocus() after they
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call show(). The samples AddLayer, DocInfo and EditRaw have been updated
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to include this fix.</LI>
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<LI>
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The Java 1.1 classes that used to be in classes.zip have been moved
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to a separate zip file, fakejava11.zip. If you are developing under JDK
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1.0.2, include both classes.zip and fakejava11.zip in your classpath. If
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you are developing under JDK 1.1, only include classes.zip.</LI>
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<LI>
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The Test framework's -in option now works again. It was broken because
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it was using FileReader, which does not appear to work under JDK 1.0.2.</LI>
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<LI>
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An event model has been added to Composer Plug-ins. This event model,
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which will work with Communicator PR3, allows you to write a Plug-in that
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can automaticly perform actions when certain events occur. Check the javadoc
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and regular documentation for Plugin and for Document for more information.</LI>
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<LI>
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The source code for the test framework classes is now included in the
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SDK.</LI>
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<LI>
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A sample Composer Plug-in .ZIP file, cpTest.zip, is now included in
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the SDK. If you are having trouble packaging your plug-in, compare the
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cpTest.zip file to your own zip file. This should help you see what's wrong.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 22
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Fixed mistakes in AddApplets comments.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added dialog.dispose() calls to each of the samples that uses AWT dialogs.
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This cleans up any native OS resources (such as native windows) that the
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dialogs might be using.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 21
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Various small improvements have been made to the sample plug-ins.</LI>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The IFCTest plug-in is now lets you edit HTML text. IFCTest is just
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like EditRaw, except that EditRaw uses the AWT, while IFCTest uses AWT.
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You can compare the two plug-ins to see the differences between the two
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toolkits.</LI>
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<LI>
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The window close boxes now work correctly in all the sample plug-ins.</LI>
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<LI>
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The AddApplet sample now calls itself "Insert:Nervous Text", which
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is what it does.</LI>
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<LI>
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The DocumentInfo plug-in's OK button has been removed, since the close
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box serves the same purpose.</LI>
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</UL>
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<LI>
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The Composer Plug-in kit now comes with a dummy version of java.lang.SecurityManager.
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This is required so that you can compile code that calls SecurityManager.setScopePermission.
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SetScopePermission is a feature of the Netscape Communicator security model.
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You will have to call it if your plug-in is planning on using privilidged
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methods. For example, the following code needs to be used to load a library:</LI>
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<DT>
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</DT>
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<UL>
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<DT>
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SecurityManager.setScopePermission();</DT>
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<DT>
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System.loadLibrary(...);</DT>
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<DT>
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SecurityManager.resetScopePermission();</DT>
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</UL>
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<DT>
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The call to setScopePermission annotates the current stack frame to
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allow it to make privileged calls.</DT>
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</UL>
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Version 20
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The image encoder test now creates a test image that's 512 x 512 pixels.
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This is large enough to help identify performace issues with your image
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encoder.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 19
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Fixed bugs related to selection comments. Added the "stickyAfter" concept.
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This is an obscure feature of selections that most developers can safely
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ignore. We added it for completeness, so that all the editor's state was
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represented in the Document object.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added an <A HREF="#i18n issues">Internationalization Issues</A> section
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at the bottom of these notes.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 18
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Removed getAbout() methods from Plugin and ImageEncoder. Developers
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wishing to provide about boxes should implement the functionality themselves.
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(For example, you could add a button to your dialog box that brings up
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an about box.)</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 17
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Added a new class, netscape.plugin.composer.ImageEncoder. Image encoders
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extend the kinds of image file formats that Composer can write. Your Composer
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Plug-in can also find and use existing image encoders to write image files.
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See the javadoc for ImageEncoder for more information.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added a sample ImageEncoder called TextImageEncoder.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added a test framework, TestImageEncoder, for testing image encoders.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added a new sample Composer Plug-in, AddApplet, which documents how
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to use the LOCALDATA property to add arbitrary local data files to a Composer
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document.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 16
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Tokens are now Clonable.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 15
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The classes directory now includes all the JDK 1.1 internationalization
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and character reader/writer classes required to create plugins. So you
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can develop using a JDK 1.0.2 compatible development environment.</LI>
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<LI>
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The examples have been downgraded to work with JDK 1.0.2. You will
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get some 'deprecated' warnings when you compile under JDK 1.1.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 14
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Added missing classes TestDocumentReader and TestDocumentWriter.</LI>
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<LI>
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DocInfo example now uses JDK1.1 style resource bundles.</LI>
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<LI>
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Entity.entities added. This method returns an enumeration of known
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entities.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 13
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Fixed race condition in EditRaw.</LI>
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<LI>
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Did minor cleanup of EditRaw.</LI>
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<LI>
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Started AddLayer sample.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 12
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Fixed -in option of navigator.test.plugin.composer.Test.</LI>
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<LI>
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Renamed SelectedHTMLStream to SelectedHTMLReader.</LI>
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<LI>
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Updated code to use JDK 1.1 Beta 2 classes. Primarily this meant converting
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from CharInputStream to Reader and CharOutputStream to Writer.</LI>
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<LI>
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Use Java 1.1 version of javadoc.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 11
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Added class netscape.plugin.composer.io.SelectedHTMLStream.</LI>
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<LI>
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Reworked selection-modifying plugins to use SelectedHTMLStream.</LI>
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<LI>
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Removed some debugging printlns.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 10
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Added IFCTest example of how to use the IFC from a plugin.</LI>
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<LI>
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Factory.getPlugins now returns an Enumeration instead of a Vector.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 9
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Added Test.perform() to simplify testing. It is now easier to test
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your plugin from within an IDE such as Symantec Cafe.</LI>
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<LI>
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Test.test() now calls System.exit. This ensures that the test terminates,
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even if the plugin or the awt has left threads running.</LI>
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<LI>
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Fixed word count in DocInfo sample.</LI>
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<LI>
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Added more information to the DocInfo sample -- now it prints out the
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base URL, the working directory, and the working directory URL.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 8
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Renamed Plugin1 to TagStrip</LI>
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<LI>
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Renamed Plugin2 to EditRaw</LI>
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<LI>
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Renamed Plugin3 to Colorize</LI>
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<LI>
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Added missing Test*Stream classes so that the SDK's test actually
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works.</LI>
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<LI>
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Minor javadoc documentation improvements.</LI>
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</UL>
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Version 7
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<H3>
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Samples:</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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A new sample plugin: AddButton, which shows how to add an image to
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a document.</LI>
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<LI>
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A new sample plugin: DocumentInfo, which shows how to access relative
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and absolute image URLs.</LI>
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<LI>
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Upgraded Plugin2 to show how to implement an "Apply" dialog button.</LI>
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</UL>
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<H3>
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API changes:</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Now requires Java 1.1 - Uses CharInputStream, CharOutputStream.</LI>
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<LI>
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Removed all attempts to help with internationalization. You should
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use the Java 1.1 ResourceBundle framework.</LI>
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<LI>
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netscape.plugin.composer.Document - The document text is now accessed
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via Char streams, rather than String objects.</LI>
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<LI>
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netscape.plugin.composer.io - The Unicode stream classes have been
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removed in favor of the standard Java 1.1 Char streams.</LI>
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<LI>
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netscape.plugin.composer.Plugin - perform now returns a boolean result.
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"True" means the plugin succeeded. "False" means the plugin failed.</LI>
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</UL>
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<H3>
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Test changes:</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The test now allows you to set both the input file and the output
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file. This allows you to capture the output of the test.</LI>
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</UL>
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<H3>
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Documentation changes:</H3>
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<UL>
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<LI>
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The JavaDoc images are now supplied with the documentation, which should
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make the documentation easier to read.</LI>
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</UL>
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<H2>
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Notes</H2>
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Plug-ins created with this API will work with Netscape Communicator b2.
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They will not work with Communicator pre-release 1, because that version
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of the Communicator uses an earlier version of the Composer Plug-in API.
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We are not supporting Composer Plugins on Communicator 4.0 pre-release
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1.
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<H2>
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<A NAME="i18n issues"></A>Internationalization Issues</H2>
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The intention is that you will use the Java 1.1 internationalization classes
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to internationalize your composer plug-in API. Unfortunately, Java 1.1
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is still in beta, and so not all of the necessary classes are available
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for you to use. There are several issues here:
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<OL>
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<LI>
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The JDK 1.1 classes are still being defined, so they are buggy and
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their API may change.</LI>
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<LI>
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Most Java IDEs support JDK 1.0.2, and so do not contain any of the
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JDK 1.1 classes.</LI>
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<LI>
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Netscape Communicator version 4.0b2 doesn't have the full JDK 1.1 internationalization
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classes.</LI>
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</OL>
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We suggest that you do the following:
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<UL>
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<LI>
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Write your UI using the new JDK 1.1 ResourceBundle classes. By putting
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your resource strings in a resource bundle, you will make it easier to
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internationalize your plugin.</LI>
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<LI>
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Look at the DocumentInfo sample plug-in. This shows you the style you
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should follow when using the ResourceBundle class. If you stick to this
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subset of the full ResourceBundle functionality, your plug-in will work,
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and will be easy to port to the final JDK 1.1 interfaces.</LI>
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<LI>
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We have provided a JDK 1.0.2 compatable version of the ResourceBundle
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classes in the Composer Plug-in Kit. This means that you can develop your
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plug-in using a JDK1.0.2 IDE, such as Symantec Visual Cafe.</LI>
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<LI>
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Expect to have to slightly tweak your use of resource bundles before
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Communicator 4.0 goes final.</LI>
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</UL>
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</BODY>
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</HTML>
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