Understanding front-end calls

Use the ui.Interface.frontCall() class method to call functions defined in the front end, that will be executed locally on the workstation where the front end resides.

Important: Some front-end calls are specific to the technology and may not by supported by all front-ends. For example, it is not possible to execute a shell command (shellexec) with the Web front-end.

When calling a user function from programs, specify a module name and a function name. Input and output parameters can be passed/returned in order to transmit/receive values to/from the front end.

A typical example is an "open file" dialog window that allows you to select a file from the front end workstation file system.

A set of standard front end functions is built-in by default in the front end. It is possible to write your own functions in order to extend the front end possibilities. For example, you can write a set of functions to wrap an existing API, such as Window DDE or OLE. A set of user functions is defined in a module, implemented as a Windows™ DLL or UNIX™ shared library. These modules are loaded automatically according to the module name. See the front end documentation for more details about creating user function modules in the front end.

Tip: Regarding DDE/OLE APIs to manipulate Microsoft™ Office documents, There are freeware alternatives such as the Apache POI Java™ library which can be used with the Java Interface. See for example Java Interface: Example 2 .