154 Student Guide. 29. ActiveX. Chapter 29. ActiveX. Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-1

Transcription

1 154 Student Guide 29. ActiveX Chapter 29 ActiveX Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-1

2 Intellution Dynamics ifix 29. ActiveX Section Objectives This section provides an introduction to ActiveX. This includes the following: Overview of ActiveX concepts Advantages of using ActiveX Common ActiveX controls Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-2

3 154 Student Guide Overview of ActiveX A. Component Architecture B. ActiveX Built upon object oriented technologies - small self-contained packages of functionality - exposes properties, methods, and events in the form of automation interfaces - ifix WorkSpace shapes, like the rectangle, are objects Gives the user tools to assemble objects into more complex structures A set of programming technologies created by Microsoft Allows software components created in different languages to interact with one another on a workstation or in a networked environment Based on the COM (Component Object Model ) programming model C. ActiveX Control (OCX) An object that supports OLE automation / object automation Can be manipulated by the user to perform an action via VBA or animations Lives inside an ActiveX container and is managed by the container Can be a visual object (like a gauge) or non-visible (like a data connection object) D. ActiveX Document Contains simple, native objects and ActiveX controls A file that can be edited using an ActiveX compliant application ActiveX documents created with ifix include: - ifix picture files (*.GRF) - ifix schedule files (*.EVS) Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-3

4 Intellution Dynamics ifix Installing an ActiveX Control A. Installing an ActiveX Control There are two ways to install an ActiveX Control: B. Installation program - Using the ActiveX installation program - Register the Control manually Installation / setup program copies files to designated directories and registers the components in the NT registry C. Register the Control manually Copy *.OCX, *.DLLs, *.EXEs to \\WinNT\System32 - or any directory including \Dynamics should work also Run RegSvr32 ( regsvr32.exe <filename>.ocx ) D. Troubleshooting - or [Add Control] while selecting Insert Object in WorkSpace this registers the control within ifix but not NT Registry If there are problems dropping the control into the WorkSpace after installation: - test control in Microsoft Visual Basic v5 / v6 - if it doesn t work there, contact the vendor for support - if it works there, contact Intellution for support Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-4

5 154 Student Guide Advantages of Using ActiveX Controls A. Cost / Development Decrease Build an ActiveX control once and use it over and over Complex shape objects may be easier to construct as an OCX versus WorkSpace shapes Complex code may be easier to compile into an OCX versus running as VBA module B. Reusability - Code inside the OCX does not run in the same thread as VBA code An ActiveX control used with any ActiveX container will work with ifix ActiveX controls used in a specialized, custom system will work with ifix Custom ActiveX controls will work with ifix C. Availability D. Security There exists a very large number of OCXs on the internet Specialized OCXs designed for vertical markets can be used in ifix Available from a multitude of vendors from international venues When an ActiveX control is deployed, the run-time code is visible, but not the source code - VBA code can be password protected, but it is still the source code The programming code that makes up the ActiveX control is not accessible E. Secure containment Handled within the WorkSpace - overhead of running the OCX in a separate memory space is too high When OCX crashes, ifix contains the crash cleans up the memory Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-5

6 Intellution Dynamics ifix Examples of ActiveX Controls A. Common ifix controls Standard ifix controls - ifix Alarm Summary Control see Figure ifix Color Button Control - ifix Expression Editor Control see Figure 29-2 Additional ifix controls VisiconX - VisiconX Combo Box - VisiconX Data Control - VisiconX Grid Control - VisiconX List Box ibatch controls - many Batch Add, Alarm List, Binding Prompt List, etc B. Other useful controls Global Majic gauges, sliders, buttons, switches Reichard Software's Symbol Factory Industrial Automation Graphics National Instruments component works automation symbols RealNetworks streaming audio/video Macromedia multimedia / animations Seagate crystal reports AutoDesk CAD file browser / WHIP control Adobe Acrobat file browser Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-6

7 154 Student Guide Examples of ActiveX Controls Figure 29-1: ifix Alarm Summary Control Figure 29-2: ifix Expression Editor Control Figure 29-3: Insert Object Dialog box Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-7

8 Intellution Dynamics ifix Microsoft ActiveX Controls A. Forms and selection Microsoft Forms Popup Menu Object (IE Popup Menu Control) Calendar Control - see Figure 29-4 B. Multimedia Active Movie Control - see Figure 29-4 Windows Media Control C. Other Microsoft controls Microsoft Communication Control Timer Object (IE Timer) D. Browsing Reports Browsing / viewing ActiveX Controls - Microsoft Web Browser - Microsoft Rich Text Control Nearly all report generators can create electronic documents - can be left on a server for later viewing - can be ed using a mailing list Many report generators support RTF format - Rich Text Format supported by many word processors / text editors Many documents in HTML format - browse report from any browser - cross platform compatibility Browsing of HTML files can be done from within the Workspace - Microsoft Web Browser Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-8

9 154 Student Guide Microsoft ActiveX Controls Figure 29-4: Microsoft ActiveX Examples Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc. 29-9

10 Intellution Dynamics ifix Global Majic Software ActiveX Controls A. Global Majic Software, Inc. Sample Controls - Angular Gauge, Knob, Alphanumeric LED, Slider, Toggle, Strip Chart, Linear Gauge, Percentage Indicator, Selector Switch, etc Figure 29-5: Global Majic Software ActiveX Examples Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc

11 154 Student Guide Adobe ActiveX Controls A. Browsing Documents A growing number of documents are available in electronic format - specs on equipment - diagrams for maintenance purposes - troubleshooting guides - equipment Operation instructions Browsing of documents can be done from within the Workspace Many documents in PDF format - secure format documents cannot be altered without a PDF writer - cross Platform and Printer Driver independent formatting - formatting more reliable and files more compact than HTML counterpart Use the Acrobat Control for ActiveX - Adobe Systems Inc latest control also allows text searches Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc

12 Intellution Dynamics ifix AutoDesk ActiveX Controls A. Browsing Drawings and Blue Prints in DWF format A growing number of drawing are available in DWF format Vector graphics format for the transfer of drawings over intranet / Internet Uses compression to speed up data transfer times. An "electronic plot" that is "view-only" DWF supports hyperlinking Links can activate Java applications, scripts, or other DWF files DWF supported by AutoCAD 13 or higher AutoDesk WHIP! Viewer ActiveX control allows viewing in browser - Drawings useful for browsing - Electrical, Mechanical, Architectural, Landscape, etc Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc

13 154 Student Guide AutoDesk ActiveX Controls Figure 29-6: AutoDesk WHIP! ActiveX Control Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc

14 Intellution Dynamics ifix 29. ActiveX this page intentionally contains no data Copyright 2001, Intellution, Inc