[plt-scheme] Re: stand-alone app

Matthew Flatt wrote:
> [Slightly extended reply. The first one didn't make it to the list, anyway.]
> 
> At Tue, 24 Sep 2002 19:28:38 -0500 (CDT), Jefferson Provost wrote:
> 
>>I'm trying to figure out the best way to build a stand-alone application
>>that uses both MrEd and my own foreign (C/C++) code.  Right now, what I
>>have uses (make-embedding-executable) to build an executable with my
>>scheme modules in it, one of which calls (load-extension) to load my
>>foreign functions.  This works as long as my pwd is the same as the
>>directory where the compiled app is, but I can't figure out how to make it
>>always find the extension regardless of the users pwd.
> 
> 
> You can use the result of 
> 
>   (find-system-path 'exec-file)
> 
> to compute the right directory. The result from `find-system-path' can
> be a relative path that is resolved via the user's PATH environment
> variable, so use something like this to get an absolute path:
> 
>  (let ([p (find-system-path 'exec-file)])
>     (if (absolute-path? p)
>         p
>         (find-executable-path p #f)))
> 
> This works only if you have a chance to find the directory before any
> other code changes the current directory (which seems likely in your
> case).

This works.  I put in some startup code to find and load the extension 
before I start my REPL, and it works fine.  Our app will eventually 
allow users to add their own C/C++ extensions, so I'll have to do 
something like this anyway.

> 
> The mzc manual contains instructions for building a stand-alone
> executable for native code. The specific instructions are for building
> from Scheme source, but the same idea will work with extension code, I
> think.

Okay, I see now.  Our program is going to be distributed in source form 
(on sourceforge), I dunno whether we want to have to include the whole 
PLT source tree inside ours.  I'd rather not if I can help it.

> The underlying problem, I think, is that extensions aren't tied into
> the module system well enough. In particular, `make-embedding-executable'
> should be able to embed extensions as well as bytecodes. I think I see
> a way to make it work, but getting it right will take time.

It would be nice to be able to include an extension as a module, but for 
now, the solution above will work.  Our program is probably going to 
have a large app directory full of associated scripts and things, so 
it's not a problem to have to load a "core extension" ... oxymoron 
though it may be. ;-)


J.