| 摘要 |
<p>A system includes a brokering arrangement for exchanging information between software modules including notifiers which detect triggering events having corresponding event classes and observers interested in receiving notification of the happenings of the triggering events. The system includes a broker, observers, and notifiers. The software modules are created in discrete addressable locations of a single computer's memory or the memories of multiple computers interconnected through a network. The broker maintains one or more look-up tables having the identities and memory or network locations of all notifier and observer software modules existing in the system, as well as the classes of events with which the modules are concerned. Upon creation of a new notifier or subscription to the broker by an observer module, the broker adds the newly-created module to the one or more look-up tables, which the broker then scans to match notifiers and observers having common event classes. If the broker determines that a notifier and observer share an event class, the broker instructs the notifier to send notification of the happening of the triggering event directly to the observer. The broker, then assists notifiers and observers in establishing direct callback interfaces, but is not involved in later communications between the notifiers and observers after the callback interfaces are established. As new modules are created, and as old modules are removed and/or re-created, the look-up tables are updated and the observers are notified accordingly, thereby permitting so-called "hot swapping" of software components. <IMAGE></p> |
