Re: [linux-audio-dev] more Ladspa GUI proposals

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Subject: Re: [linux-audio-dev] more Ladspa GUI proposals
From: David Benson (daveb_AT_idealab.com)
Date: Thu May 25 2000 - 17:33:19 EEST


> It strikes me also, IF the GUI for the plugin is a separate entity, could it not
> be a program in it self, would it hurt much?? The passing of data to the host
> must be solved in some elegant way.... By making it a self operating application
> point 4 would arguably be solved also.

Here is the problem I guess: if you want the plugin to
make a gui, we must standardize a toolkit or use a separate address
space / x-connection. If we use a separate address
space, we must standardize the synching protocol, which
is also difficult.

The "gui-in-plugin" (which implies the plugins run as a separate
process) also has the drawback:
        - ladspa plugins will suddenly require an additional toolkit
          (otherwise it is the *hosts* responsibility to have the toolkit
          installed) (basically this *will* lead to users not
          being able to use all ladspa plugins in all hosts
          in all gui environments)
        - ladspa plugins will probably be X only (embedded dsp apps
          would be excluded). I guess we don't care about this.
        - ipc and process swapping is probably going to
          hurt the extremely low-latency stuff. (i think it may
          hurt even higher-latency stuff, who knows?)
        - It might be hard for the host to embed the plugin-made gui
          into its own gui.

Though tractable, I think these problems are formidable,
in the general case.

Furthermore they increase the complexity of
writing good plugins, etc. (you have to learn a gui toolkit
to make a complete plugin-package)

In conclusion -- the idea seems simple, but it has problems
whose resolution would make is a lot more complex.

- dave

ps. otoh the standard does have most of what you need already.
     maybe someone from the plugin-owned gui camp
     could make a plugin that forked, connected to the x-server
     again, and tried to launch its own gui.

     this would certainly help clear up some of these
     technical problems.


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