[Desktop_architects] [Announce] "Common Desktop Infrastructure" 0.1.0 is released

[Daisuke Kameda]

Hello All,

We have released "Common Desktop Infrastructure" 0.1.0 under LGPL version3.
http://www.smg.co.jp/opensource/CommonDesktopInfrastructure/
http://www.smg.co.jp/opensource/CommonDesktopInfrastructure/products/commond
esktop-0.1.0.tar.gz


I write the background of making this software.

I think there are some obstacles of marketing for open source desktop 
environment, such as Linux. One of them is that it is more difficult to 
develop business applications in an open source environment compared to 
the Windows environment.

So, many ISV, System Integrators (SIers), and software houses do not select 
an open source desktop environment as the platform for developing business 
applications and systems.

For example, there are some barriers caused by insufficient realization 
of the following features.

(1). Collaboration features among desktop applications
    - Data transfer between applications
    - Linking and embedding of objects
    - Binding of objects 

(2). Collaboration features between network services and desktop
applications

The features in (1) can be realized to some extent in a closed environment 
of one of the desktop component technologies for open source software,
such as QtDBUS (KDE), ORBit2 (GNOME), XPCOM (Mozilla), or UNO 
(OpenOffice.org).

However, it is impossible to interoperate across the above component 
technologies because standards and systems for open source desktop 
environments have not been established sufficiently.

Therefore, desktop applications can satisfy needs by complementing each
other 
but cannot collaborate with each other. The feature in (2) is not realized 
in OSS.

So, we aim to realize infrastructure which resolve the problems 
mentioned above.



I also write the architecture of this software.

We act as the first step to progressively realize the system that can 
interoperate across QtDBUS (KDE), ORBit2 (GNOME), XPCOM (Mozilla), UNO 
(OpenOffice.org), and SOAP (Web Service) in order to achieve the purposes 
mentioned above. But, Common Desktop Infrastructure deal with only QtDBus, 
UNO, and SOAP at present.

In this project, to achieve the purposes, D-BUS  is used as a platform that 
links the desktop component technologies and the protocol for web services. 
D-BUS was selected because it was developed as a desktop common bus by 
freedesktop.org project and there is a tendency that increasing number of 
open source softwares for desktop.

We have developed common component protocol and protocol converter's core 
based on D-BUS, in order to convert mutually data and remote procedure call
(RPC).


And we have introduced abstract component for interoperability. If there 
isn't it, the users of Common Desktop Infrastructure need to develop 
software or systems with considering each component. the users can develop 
with considering only abstract component. 

For example, if the users want to use mail client, they need to only use 
mail client component. In this case, the mail client component is mapped 
to the component of Kmail, Thunderbird, or Evolution according to settings.


Moreover, We have made code generators which generate protocol conversion 
codes for each components from IDL. So, you can use Common Desktop 
Infrastructure by only writing IDL. In addition, you can use existing 
component by using code generators.



Please try to use it.
And any question and opinion will be welcomed.

Regards,
-- 
Daisuke Kameda
  Japan KDE Users' Group:  President
    mailto:daisuke at kde.gr.jp  http://www.kde.gr.jp/~daisuke/
  immodule for Qt Project:  Project Maintainer
    http://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/Software_2fimmodule_2dqt
  SMG Co., Ltd.:  Engineering Creator
    mailto:kameda at smg.co.jp  http://www.smg.co.jp/
    http://www.smg.co.jp/opensource/CommonDesktopInfrastructure/