Higher-Order Concurrent Win32 Programming

TL;DR

This paper introduces a concurrent programming framework for Win32 applications using Concurrent ML, shifting from event loops to threaded message processing and enabling flexible, composable controls including ActiveX integration.

Contribution

It presents a novel concurrent framework for Win32 programming based on Concurrent ML, emphasizing a threaded message model and decoupled control notifications.

Findings

Enhanced modularity and composability of Win32 controls

Seamless integration of ActiveX controls

Improved concurrency handling in GUI applications

Abstract

We present a concurrent framework for Win32 programming based on Concurrent ML, a concurrent language with higher-order functions, static typing, lightweight threads and synchronous communication channels. The key points of the framework are the move from an event loop model to a threaded model for the processing of window messages, and the decoupling of controls notifications from the system messages. This last point allows us to derive a general way of writing controls that leads to easy composition, and can accommodate ActiveX Controls in a transparent way.