Learning DCOM - Softcover

Thai, Thuan L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1565925815 ISBN 13: 9781565925816

Publisher: O'Reilly Media, 1999

Synopsis

A comprehensive guide introduces C++ programmers to DCOM; offers them the basic tools they need to write secure, maintainable programs; and clearly describes the C++ code needed to create distributed components and more. Original. (Intermediate).

About this title

Review

Written for the advanced C++ developer, Learning DCOM looks beyond wizard-generated code to teach you how you to build most of the C++ code yourself in order to create effective distributed Component Object Model (DCOM) components.

The book commences with a tour of distributed computing, from the early days of terminal emulation, to the Remote Procedure Call (RPC) and onward to today's DCOM. The author includes a rich introduction to COM, from objects and built-in and custom interfaces to important concepts such as containment and aggregation. Though somewhat densely written, these chapters on the details of DCOM expose its real inner workings with standout material providing a full treatment of the different thread apartment models.

The second half of the book focuses on existing wizard-based code (using Visual C++ tools for the Active Template Library [ATL] and Microsoft Foundation Classes [MFC] COM components) starting with an ATL server-side optical character recognition (OCR) component. The author then presents client-side programming strategies for COM, far beyond tapping built-in Visual C++ capabilities, that incorporate custom template-based smart pointers for calling COM objects.

The book then turns to Web development where an OCR example is used within an Internet Explorer Web page. Sections on security demonstrate how to cooperate with Windows NT, as well as auditing and administrative options. Unfortunately, coverage of Microsoft Transaction Server (MTS) is omitted here, arguably one of the most critical aspects of writing scalable Web applications. A final chapter on event handling (and connection points) shows off how to process events with distributed components.

Notable for its considerable technical depth and detail, Learning DCOM gives the advanced developer the inside track on creating state-of-the-art DCOM components. --Richard Dragan

About the Author

Thuan L. Thai started computer programming 15 years ago but has never been tired with this hobby--one that he truly considers an art. He is currently a senior systems engineer at SAIC where he has led the architecture and development of several successful distributed and COM-based imaging systems. He also teaches Win32, MFC, and COM programming courses for Learning Tree International. Prior to all this, Thuan worked for AMS where he developed multi-tiered, object frameworks using C++ and RPC. He received his bachelor of science in computer science from the University of Virginia.

When not developing software, Thuan enjoys strumming his six strings and writing songs every now and then. He often plays 9-ball with the same buddies with whom he has played the game for over eight years. Thuan hopes to play more tennis, the only sport that he has ever played for more than eight hours in a single day.

Edition details

• Publisher: O'Reilly Media
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1565925815
• ISBN 13: 9781565925816
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 504