Re: Linux API developer documentation
From: Edward Diener (eldiener_no_spam_here_at_earthlink.net)
Date: 04/09/05
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Date: Sat, 09 Apr 2005 02:11:32 GMT
Peter T. Breuer wrote:
> Edward Diener <eldiener_no_spam_here@earthlink.net> wrote:
>> John Hasler wrote:
>>> Edward Diener writes:
>>>> Where does one normally find the documentation to the core
>>>> functions of the Linux API ?
>>>
>>> Libc. On Debian you would install libc6-dev, glibc-doc, and
>>> manpages-dev. 'info libc' will then tell you everything could could
>>> possibly want to know. There is also a man page for each function.
>>> The 'apropos' command will help you find it. I also suggest that
>>> you Google 'POSIX'.
>>
>> Thanks ! I am a C++ programmer so I will not have problems with
>> that. I am intirigued however by how other languages, such as Python
>> and Java access the Linux kernel.
>
> Java has its own API. In each native archtecture the java support has
> to supply the standard java interface to the programmer. It's likely
> written in C, so all it has to do is hook into libc.
>
> Python has its own API ...
>
> (I hope you get the idea).
>
>> Is there no shared library with exported functions under
>> Linux which can be accessed by other languages ?
>
> Sure - any one. All you need is that your language has a way of
> calling C library functions. C does. Fortran does. I even seem to
> recall that java does! (though I'm not going to look it up).
>
>> If there is, is there no
>> general documentation other than the libc documentation about the
>> kernel
>
> What "kernel functionality"? It's none of your business what the
> kernel is, or how it works! It doesn't even have to be a linux kernel.
> Libraries and applications will be built against libc. It's libc's
> (and maybe some few other libraries) job to interface with the
> kernel, and it provides the standard posix interface to applications.
>
>> functionality ? Sorry to be comparing the Linux core functionality to
>> Windows, which is what I have largely worked with, but in that OS
>> there is an API of base services which serves as the documentation
>> for Windows core
>
> You are confusing libraries and kernel.
>
>> functionality ( implemented in Windows shared libraries ). Does
>> Linux have
>
> Then talk about libraries, not "windows". Linux distributions
> generally also have a library that implements a winodws API.
>
>> such documentation or is it encompassed completely in the
>> documentation for libc. Maybe the POSIX documentation is the
>> equivalent to what I am thinking.
>
> If you are looking for the standard posix API, then yes, you would be
> looking for the posix documentation on the standard posix API. But
> what's wrong with the man pages? Posix is only a formalization and
> standardisation of the common unix practices and functions as
> developed over thirty plus years. They won't say anything different.
> You will always see in a man page something like:
>
>
> CONFORMING TO
> ... POSIX, ...
>
> You are free to implement or use any other API, however! Whatever you
> like. However, that would mean you having to maintain a library that
> interfaces with and tracks kernel syscalls, which is a big job. It's
> the thankless task done by libc.
>
> Choose an API. Then use it.
OK, I get the idea. Libc is it. Thanks !
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