libtool: Dlopened modules

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1 10 Dlopened modules
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1 It can sometimes be confusing to discuss "dynamic linking", because the
1 term is used to refer to two different concepts:
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1   1. Compiling and linking a program against a shared library, which is
1      resolved automatically at run time by the dynamic linker.  In this
1      process, dynamic linking is transparent to the application.
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1   2. The application calling functions such as 'dlopen' that load
1      arbitrary, user-specified modules at runtime.  This type of dynamic
1      linking is explicitly controlled by the application.
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1    To mitigate confusion, this manual refers to the second type of
1 dynamic linking as "dlopening" a module.
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1    The main benefit to dlopening object modules is the ability to access
1 compiled object code to extend your program, rather than using an
1 interpreted language.  In fact, dlopen calls are frequently used in
1 language interpreters to provide an efficient way to extend the
1 language.
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1    Libtool provides support for dlopened modules.  However, you should
1 indicate that your package is willing to use such support, by using the
1 'LT_INIT' option 'dlopen' in 'configure.ac'.  If this option is not
1 given, libtool will assume no dlopening mechanism is available, and will
1 try to simulate it.
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1    This chapter discusses how you as a dlopen application developer
1 might use libtool to generate dlopen-accessible modules.
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Menu

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· Building modules            Creating dlopenable objects and libraries.
· Dlpreopening                Dlopening that works on static platforms.
· Linking with dlopened modules  Using dlopenable modules in libraries.
· Finding the dlname          Choosing the right file to 'dlopen'.
· Dlopen issues               Unresolved problems that need your attention.
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