Overview

Isight parameters are the primary mechanism for providing input data to a component and presenting the output data produced by a component, as well as communicating that data to other components.

The format or composition of the data is defined by the specified datatype for the parameter. Because the necessary datatype to represent a quantity depends on the domain of usage, and sometimes even on a specific application, Isight provides an easy way to develop and add new datatypes to the environment so that they can be used in defining parameters to represent those quantities.

For example, some components might require color to be provided as input. Color can be represented by specifying a mixture of intensity levels for red, green, and blue (RGB). Thus, a custom datatype could be developed that represents its overall value, a single color, by having values set for the red, green, and blue intensity levels and displaying the color produced as its value.

A datatype is a Java jar file that includes the following:

  • An Editor Java class to provide an interface for setting the value.

  • A Value Java class to provide the runtime execution functionality.

  • A Renderer Java class to provide a way for the value to be displayed.

  • An XML descriptor file that specifies the aforementioned classes.

  • Any other files necessary to support the aforementioned classes, primarily for the graphical user interface (GUI) display.