RealWorld Software Development Kit

What do you need to create a plug-in

Visual Studio 2008 or newer is recommended for making plug-ins. Other compilers or languages may be used if it is possible to export functions and implement COM interfaces with them.

A RW plug-in is basically a COM object that implements one or more of the predefined interfaces. It is created by a class factory that is accessible via an exported DllGetClassObject function. Since RW applications are portable, they does not rely on Windows registry when looking for COM objects. Instead, a plug-in should export an additional DllEnumClasses function that enumerates COM objects in the .dll file.

The recommended way of creating a plug-in is by using a ATL dll wizard in Visual Studio and then including RWEnumClasses.inl in the main .cpp file of the project. Finally, the DllEnumClasses function should be added to the generated .def file. Individual classes can then be added via the "Add class" command in Visual Studio.

What kinds of plug-ins are supported

RealWorld application support a wide variety of plug-ins, including the obligatory image filters and file format codecs. Less usual plug-ins include storage plug-in (which may be used for example to add direct ftp support), drawing tool and fill style plug-ins, new document creation wizard plug-ins, general purpose plug-in (like the Customize page in RW Cursor Editor) and other, even more obscure, plug-in types.

The latest SDK currently contains 2 example plug-ins: the Dissolve image filter and the Luce drawing tool.

RW plug-ins can cooperate and it is possible to create a plug-in that modifies behavior of other plug-ins. Examples of these plug-ins are the Stylize drawing tool or the Fade image effect. Writing this kind of plug-in is slightly more difficult.

How to get and use the SDK

Download SDK for version 2013.1: SDK.zip
Download SDK for version 2009.1-2012.1: RWSDK.zip

After downloading and extracting the SDK, you can open one of the sample projects in Visual Studio and compile it.

The software is provided "as is", without warranty of any kind, whether express or implied. Authors reserve the right not to be responsible for any damage caused by a error in the software, improper usage of the software or unexpected conflict with other software.