More information about Helix

[Ryan Gammon <rgammon real com>]

For those not familiar with the open source Helix media engine, check 
out https://www.helixcommunity.org. The client part of the helix project 
is the same engine that powers the commercial Real Players.

One part of the Helix project is the Helix Player. The Helix Player 
project can be broken down into a couple of different sections:

1. HXClientKit
HXClientKit is a C binding for the Helix Client Core. The core is 
similar to mozilla, in that it is implemented using C++ and COM 
methodologies. We realize that COM isn't everyone's cup of tea, so we've 
simplified most of its functionality down into a C api.
More details are available here: 
https://player.helixcommunity.org/hxclientkit/example.html

2. The Gtk Widget
The gtk widget is a gtk, gobject-based wrapper around hxclientkit. Our 
gtk video widget derives from GtkWidget, and it is usable in gtk 
applications just like any other widget.
gtkdoc documentation on an older version of the api is available at 
https://player.helixcommunity.org/gtk/gtkhx-GtkHXPlayer.html (if you're 
an expert on gtkdoc, drop me a line)

3. The Player Application
The player application is an application based on the gtk widget. It 
uses glade to create the chrome around the video widget. We've tried to 
make the player look like other gtk applications in terms of programing 
style -- we hope this makes it easier for developers to follow the code.

4. The Mozilla Plugin
The mozilla plugin will implement the interfaces described in the 
RealOne Player Scripting guide, including functionality that has 
traditionally been unavailable to linux users (JavaScript callbacks, in 
particular). At the moment, the plugin successfully plays embedded 
content on many websites.
http://service.real.com/help/library/guides/realonescripting/browse/realscript.htm 


5. The Glade UI
Our UI is done using glade. If you're interested in UI, you can use 
glade to easily experiment with new UI designs.

6. Example player
This is a small, simple player developed using the Helix Gtk widget. It 
can be built with the autotools (autoconf, etc.) and can be used as a 
template for those looking to develop their own player.

If you're interested in checking out the player, nightly builds are 
available here:
http://forms.helixcommunity.org/helixdnaclient/ (Source tarball for 
12/05/03, HelixPlayer, linux-2.2-libc6-i386 or 
linux-2.2-libc6-gcc32-i586 depending on how your mozilla was compiled -- 
check about:buildconfig).

And, once again, if you're interested in our first Helix Player meeting, 
RSVP to meetings player helixcommunity org with "DecMeeting" in the 
subject line.

If you want to build the player from source, instructions are available 
at https://player.helixcommunity.org/2003/draft/quickstart.html

You can subscribe to the player mailing lists, 
dev player helixcommunity org or announce helixcommunity org from the 
https://player.helixcommunity.org site.

If you're interested in Helix, be sure to click through the binary 
distribution agreement and the RPSL 
(http://www.opensource.org/licenses/real.php) on the helixcommunity.org 
-- it will give you more access to the site. If you're using helix in a 
commercial application, you should sign the RCSL instead of the RPSL.

Hope to see you at the meeting tomorrow!

--
Ryan Gammon
rgammon real com
Developer for Helix Player
https://player.helixcommunity.org