Sending Data to another app

[Mike Trader]

I just realized that I cannot create a progress bar from my DLL because it is called thousands of times. each time it is called by TradeStation it will create the progress bar, then when it is finished the progress bar window will be destroyed. then on the next bar it will be created and destroyed etc etc. The amount of time it would be on the screen is so small that you would not see it.

SO, I guess i have to write a seperate app that creates the progress bar and send data to that app from my DLL each time it is called.

Anyone know how to do that?


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Kind Regards
Mike

[Lance Edmonds]

This is known as Inter-Process Communication (IPC). There are a large number of articles on www.msdn.microsoft.com if you search for "IPC". Methods of IPC include Named Pipes, %WM_COPYDATA, Memory-mapped Files, Mail-slots, etc.

However, if you only need to send a very low volume of data (say, a percentage level, or an "advance the count" flag), you should find the %WM_COPYDATA technique is the easiest.

If you search this BBS for "WM_COPYDATA" you should find a few examples of this method of IPC.


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Lance
PowerBASIC Support
mailto:[email protected][email protected]</A>

[Peter Manders]

Why not create it in your app and pass its handle to the DLL?

Peter.


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[email protected]

[Peter Lameijn]

I agree with Peter, but if you want you could try this:

'==================================================================================================
#Compile Exe  "TestBar.Exe"  'Draws a bar
#Include "Win32Api.inc"
#Include "Commctrl.inc"

%PROGRESS = %WM_USER + 2048
%USERMSG  = %WM_USER + 2049

CallBack Function MainCb ()
  Select Case CbMsg
    Case %USERMSG
      Control Send CbHndl, %PROGRESS,%PBM_SETPOS, CbWparam , 0
  End Select
End Function

Function PbMain() As Long
  Local hDlg As Long
  InitCommonControls
  Local Icc As Init_Common_ControlsEx
  Icc.dwSize = SizeOf(Icc)
  Icc.dwIcc = %ICC_BAR_CLASSES
  InitCommonControlsEx Icc

  Dialog New 0, "Test Bar",100 ,100 , 100, 50, %WS_VISIBLE Or %WS_SYSMENU To hDlg
  Control Add "msctls_progress32", hDlg&, %PROGRESS, "", 10, 10, 80, 12, %Ws_Child Or %Ws_Visible Or %PBS_SMOOTH
  Control Send hDlg,%PROGRESS,%PBM_SETRANGE, 0, MakLng(0,20)
  Control Send hDlg,%PROGRESS,%PBM_SETBARCOLOR, 0, Rgb(200,0,0)
  Dialog Show Modal hDlg, Call MainCb
End Function

'==================================================================================================
#Compile Exe "SetBar.Exe"  'Sets the bar
#Include "Win32Api.inc"
%BTN      = %WM_USER + 2040
%USERMSG  = %WM_USER + 2049
Global hWnd As Long

CallBack Function MainCb ()
  Static lCnt As Long
  Select Case CbMsg
    Case %WM_COMMAND
      Select Case CbCtl
        Case %BTN
          If lCnt < 20 Then Incr lCnt Else lCnt = 0
          SendMessage hWnd, %USERMSG, lCnt, 0
      End Select
  End Select
End Function

Function PbMain() As Long
  Local hDlg As Long
  hWnd = FindWindow ("", "Test Bar")
  If hWnd Then
    Dialog New 0, "Set Bar",250 ,100 , 100, 50, %WS_VISIBLE Or %WS_SYSMENU To hDlg
    Control Add Button, hDlg&, %BTN, "Increment Bar", 10, 10, 80, 12
    Dialog Show Modal hDlg, Call MainCb
  Else
    MsgBox "Test Bar not started!",,"Error"
  End If
End Function

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Peter.
mailto[email protected][email protected]</A>

[Mike Trader]

Thank you all so much.

I cant create it in the app, cos the app is not mine. It is a commercially available app that has limited capability for writing code within it. I allows you to write with (Easy Language) this is a simplistic language with powefull features for calculating stock stuff.

Its saving grace is that I can call a DLL. THe problem is it calls this DLL hundreds of times. I cant make it call it once for all the bars on the chart.



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Kind Regards
Mike

[John Kovacich]

Maybe you can find some way to use LoadLibrary to keep the dll resident,
and use some static variables to prevent the destruction of the window and
progress bar.

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Thanks,

John Kovacich