Language binding
In computing, a binding from a programming language to a library or operating system service is an application programming interface (API) providing glue code to use that library or service in a particular programming language.
Binding generally refers to a mapping of one thing to another. In the context of software libraries, bindings are wrapper libraries that bridge two programming languages so that a library written for one language can be used in another language.[1] Many software libraries are written in system programming languages such as C or C++; in order to use these libraries from another (usually higher-level) language such as Java, Common Lisp, Python or Lua, a binding to the library must be created in that language, possibly requiring the recompilation of the language's code depending on the amount of modification necessary.[2] However, most languages offer an interface to foreign functions, such as Python's and OCaml's ctypes, and Embeddable Common Lisp's cffi and uffi.[3][4][5]
For example, Python bindings are used when an already existing C library written for some purpose is to be used from Python. Another example is libsvn, which is written in C and provides an API for accessing Subversion; in order to access Subversion from within Java code, libsvnjavahl can be used, which depends on libsvn being installed and acts as a bridge between the Java programming language and libsvn, thus providing an API that invokes functions from libsvn to do the real work.[6]
Software reuse is a major motivation for creating library bindings, reducing reimplementation of a library in several languages. Another is the impossibility of implementing certain algorithms efficiently in high-level languages.
Runtime environment
Object models
- CORBA – Common Object Request Broker Architecture, cross language cross platform object model
- COM – Microsoft Windows only cross-language Object Model
- Common Language Infrastructure – .NET cross-language cross-platform Object Model
- Freedesktop.org D-Bus – open cross language cross platform Object Model
Virtual machines
Porting
- Portable object – cross language cross platform Object Model definition
See also
- Application programming interface (API)
- Application Binary Interface (ABI)
- Calling convention
- Embedded SQL
- Foreign function interface
- Name mangling
- SWIG – open-source interfaces bindings generator from many languages to many languages
- Wrapper function
References
- ↑ "Appendix A. Creating a language binding for cairo". Cairographics.org. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
- ↑ "Standards, APIs, Interfaces and Bindings". Acm.org. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
- ↑ "15.17. ctypes — A foreign function library for Python". Python v2.7.6 documentation. Docs.python.org. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
- ↑ Jason Hickey; Anil Madhavapeddy; Yaron Minsky (2013). "Real Worl OCaml, Chapter 19. Foreign Function Interface". realworldocaml.org. Retrieved 2015-07-19.
- ↑ "Introduction - CFFI User Manual". Common-lisp.net. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
- ↑ "Subversion JavaHL FAQ". Subclipse.tigris.org. 2013-06-18. Retrieved 2014-04-02.
External links
- JTC1/SC22/WG11 - Binding Techniques, an ISO standard for language bindings
- What is a language binding?