OLE
support in PowerBuilder
OLE, originally an acronym for Object Linking and Embedding, is a
facility that allows Windows programs to share data and program
functionality. PowerBuilder OLE controls are containers that can call upon
OLE server applications to display and manipulate OLE objects.
OLE control
The OLE control in the Window painter allows you to link or embed
components from several applications in a window. For most servers, you
can also control the server application using functions and properties
defined by that server.
In PowerBuilder, the OLE control is a container for an OLE object.
The user can activate the control and edit the object using functionality
supplied by the server application. You can also automate OLE interactions
by programmatically activating the object and sending commands to the
server. OLE servers might be either DLLs or separate EXE files. They could
be running on a different computer.
You can use PowerScript automation on an OLE control that is visible
in a window, or use it invisibly on an object whose reference is stored in
an OLEObject variable. The OLEObject datatype lets you create an OLE
object without having an OLE container visible in a window.
OLECustomControl
A second control, OLECustomControl, is a container for an ActiveX
control (also called an OLE custom control or OCX control). ActiveX
controls are DLLs (sometimes with the extension OCX) that always run in
the same process as the application that contains them.
Managing OLE objects
You can manage OLE objects by storing them in variables and saving
them in files. There are two object types for this purpose: OLEStorage and
OLEStream. Most applications will not require these objects, but if you
need to do something complicated (such as combining several OLE objects
into a single data structure), you can use these objects and their
associated functions.
Other areas of OLE support
For information about OLE objects in a DataWindow object, see the section called “Using OLE in a DataWindow Object” in Users Guide.