Visual Basic VAR to LISP Var

[jerry.bryant]

We have an extremely large VB6 program that reads an XML file, and assigns values to VB Variables

   shelldia = 121.0

   shellthk = 0.125

   etc.....100's of them

I then used (since the stone ages) VLAX.CLS to convert those VB Variables over to identical LISP Variables...very simple process

Then I have a massive Lisp program that does drawing stuff with the Variables.

We will re-write the VB6 app to .NET (not me, someone else), but I don't think the VLAX.CLS module will work with these VB.NET Varibales...since it was a VBA Module.

Question is.....Is there a VLAX.CLS version for VB.NET (since VBA will not be available in ACAD 2012.)

[caddzone]

With a NETLOADed .NET extension (written in VB.NET or C#),. you can

very easily 'pull' data from the .NET extension into LISP, rather than have

to 'push' data to LISP, which has quite a few complications.

For example, you can define functions in a .VB.NET dll that can be

called from LISP. Those functions can take arguments and return a 

result back to the calling LISP code.

So, the more inferior approach of 'pushing' data to LISP, can and

should be avoided entirely.

[jerry.bryant]

ok....I assume you ar talking about using.......LispFunction.....this is what I can't figure out...

"....Those functions can take arguments and return a  result back to the calling LISP code....."

How would you do this?

[norman.yuan]

I replied your previous post on this topic.

I used to do quite some LISP programming, but left it behind since Acad2000 (more than 10 years!) when I moved to VBA and then .NET API. I forgot most AutoLISP syntex...

Attached is an article on the topic of mixing .NET and LISP from Autodesk University. Hope it gives more hind than my previous reply. If you are reasonably good at LISP, it should not be very difficult to figure it how how to get data outputted from an .NET function (tagged as <LispFunction>).

HTH

[jerry.bryant]

Thanks Norman...this looks very good.

And yes, I have been stuying your previous solution/suggestion thi smorning.

My problem is my lack of .NET experience......and the fact that hte ReadXML function(s) which was already written (by someone else)...is massive.

Anyway, I appreciate all your help.