Inside Macintosh: Interapplication Communication /

Chapter 1 - Introduction to Interapplication Communication

This chapter describes the interapplication communication (IAC) architecture for Macintosh computers, summarizes how your application can take advantage of it, and tells you where in this book to find the information you need to perform specific tasks.

The Apple Event Manager, Event Manager, and Program-to-Program Communications (PPC) Toolbox underlie all the IAC tasks your application can perform. This chapter introduces the Apple Event Manager and the Program-to-Program Communications Toolbox. For information about the Event Manager, see Inside Macintosh: Macintosh Toolbox Essentials. For definitions of the standard Apple events available for use by all applications, see the Apple Event Registry: Standard Suites.

The IAC architecture includes the Open Scripting Architecture (OSA). The OSA provides a mechanism that allows users to control multiple applications by means of scripts, or sets of instructions, written in a variety of scripting languages. Each scripting language has a corresponding scripting component that is managed by the Component Manager. When a user executes a script, the scripting component sends Apple events to one or more applications to perform the actions the script describes.

This chapter introduces the OSA and describes how to make your application scriptable, or capable of responding to Apple events sent to it by a scripting component.
For more information about using the Component Manager, see Inside Macintosh: More Macintosh Toolbox.

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Chapter Contents

Overview of Interapplication Communication

Sharing Data Among Applications

Sending and Responding to Apple Events

Standard Apple Events

Handling Apple Events

Supporting AppleScript and Other Scripting Languages

Scriptable Applications

Recordable Applications

Applications That Manipulate and Execute Scripts

Exchanging Message Blocks