Is this a cross-platform/language problem ?

[rc_hz]

If a server-side programmer uses java5 platform and he write a slice file which uses some java5 features such as generic, special collection:

#ifndef SIMPLETEST_ICE
#define SIMPLETEST_ICE

module Simpletest
{
    ["java:type:java.util.LinkedList<String>:java.util.List<String>"]
    sequence<string> StringList;
};                
#endif

Of course, the server-side programmer has no problem to use this slice file in java5 platform. Then he distributes this slice file to client-side programmer.


However, the client-side programmer uses java2 platform instead of java5 platform, so he uses the following command to generate code:

slice2java --output-dir generated Simpletest.ice

This generates two files: StringListHolder.java, StringListHelper.java. More details of StringListHolder.java is as follows:

//...
public final class StringListHolder
{
    public
    StringListHolder()
    {
    }

    public
    StringListHolder(java.util.List<String> value)
    {
	this.value = value;
    }

    public java.util.List<String> value;
}
//...

These two files can not be compiled in java2 platform. So is it a problem of cross-platform/language ? Maybe slice2java should be smarter so that it can generate different code in java2 platform. To do so, there is a need for the client-side programmer to pass some cue to slice2java.

[matthew]

What goes on the wire in both cases is identical -- so there is no cross-platform/cross-language problem. What you are running into is using specific language meta-data changes the compiled definitions of the slice definitions. To solve this problem you can either use two sets of slice definitions with different pieces of meta-data, or you can use #ifdef to do this. Something like:

module Simpletest
{
#ifdef JAVA5
    ["java:type:java.util.LinkedList<String>:java.util.List<String>"]
#endif
    sequence<string> StringList;
};

[rc_hz]

To solve this problem you can either use two sets of slice definitions with different pieces of meta-data, or you can use #ifdef to do this.

Yes, these are two solutions, but I think they are not the best! It's better if slice2java can solve this.