Global Objects

A global object is a reusable, technology-independent object that is centrally stored and available to all components running on a given host, regardless of the deployment environment.

Global objects are stored in runtime libraries. They are not statically bound to components and application shells . Instead, when executing a component that references a global object, Uniface locates the object in the appropriate library and resolves the reference at runtime. This makes it possible to modify global objects without recompiling the components and application shells that use them.

Global objects can use other global objects. For example, a component can call a global ProcScript entry that uses global messages.

For text-based global objects, such as messages and menus, the containing library is language-specific. Uniface determines which message to display at runtime based the on information it has about the current environment. Both the library and the language can be set when the application is started.

Types of Global Objects

Global Object	Purpose
Global constants	Named constant values that can be accessed by all ProcScript in the application. Note:  Unlike other global objects, global constants are defined in an IncludeScript with the fixed name DEFPARAM. For more information, see Define a Global Constant.
Global variables	Typed variables that can be accessed by all ProcScript in the application. For more information, see Variables.
Global ProcScripts	ProcScript modules that can be called by any ProcScript in the application.
Messages	Language-specific objects that can be used in labels, help text, prompts, error messages, and so on. They include messages, help texts, and language setups.
Menu Objects	Language-specific definitions of menu bars, menus , and pop-up menus for desktop applications.
Panels	Toolbars containing buttons to execute structure editor functions and operations on the active form (desktop applications only).
Drag-and-Drop Formats	Language-specific definitions for the pop-up menu, icon, and default action for drag-and-drop actions in specific widgets.
Glyphs	Images in a Uniface-proprietary format, which can be used as background images in forms, entities and application shells, and as icons in widgets, panel buttons, menus, and drag-and-drop formats.