MIME-Version: 1.0 Server: CERN/3.0 Date: Sunday, 01-Dec-96 19:20:07 GMT Content-Type: text/html Content-Length: 3354 Last-Modified: Wednesday, 13-Sep-95 13:59:56 GMT OLE 2.0 vs. OpenDoc and Microsoft Foundation Classes

Presentation

Microsoft's brain-child. It is supposed to take over the world and be the definitive answer to object technology...according to Microsoft of course. OLE is also the basis for the next version of Windows NT (the real 32-bit OS from MS) which is code named Cairo. OLE is an "open" standard...depending on who you ask. If you ask Microsoft, it is open, but if you ask anyone else, they will probably disagree. Microsoft has made information on OLE available through the internet.

OpenDoc Overview

OpenDoc is backed by many companies in the computer industry. The standard is controlled by an organization called C.I. Labs. OpenDoc is positioned as a component architecture that exceeds the capabilities of Microsoft's OLE.

OpenDoc Supporters

These are the companies that have officially jumped on the OpenDoc bandwagon. Each of the companies and organizations have pledged to use it, contributed time, money, and/or helped to implement it.

Microsoft Foundation Classes (MFC) Overview

The Foundation classes are a "thin" wrapper around the Windows (16-bit & 32-bit) API. These classes also have utility classes that implement some base functionality that could prove to be useful during a project. For example, a linked list is one of the implemented classes.

In addition to the other features, the "best" part of MFC is the cross platform aspect of the libraries. If the libraries are used for application development, almost all that is required for a Mac OS compliant version is a simple recompile of the code. Most platform differences are hidden within MFC.

Foundation Class Supporters


Last updated: 12 September 1995
jmm@cs.cornell.edu