Patent ID: 6438615
Filing Date: 2002-08-20
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
A method of developing software in an object-oriented applet or application developing environment, the method comprising:providing an application development environment configured to enable construction of software by defining connections between at least two object-oriented software components that are graphally reresented in the application development environmet; providing a first object-oriented software component having a bidirectional port, the bidirectional port having a graphical reprentation being presented in the application development environment and the bi-directonal port configured to enable the connection of the first object-oriented software component to a second object-oriented software component by allowing connection of the bi-directional port to a second graphical representation in the application development elavironment, the second graphical representation representing a second port that is associated with the second object-oriented software; initializing the bidirectional port of the first object-oriented software component to a two-way state by assigning a first and a second logic to service inputs and service outputs associated with the bidirectional port respectively; determining whether the bidirectional port should serve as input or output; amending a first input output status associated with the bidirectional port to reflect the current status of the bidirectional port as input or output; sending a message to the second object-oriented software component that is to be connected with the first object-oriented software component, the message indicating the input output status of the bidirectional port of the first object-oriented software component; comparing the first input output status associated with the bidirectional port of the first object-oriented software to a second input output status associated with the second port of the second object-oriented software component; permitting the connection of the first object-oriented software component to the second object-oriented software component when the first input output status is opposite to the second input output status of the second object-oriented software component.