The illustrative embodiment of the present invention provides a method for extending
a programming language to interact with foreign object systems. Through the use
of an opaque interface, a requesting unit may interact with multiple foreign object
systems. The requesting unit is an executable piece of code such as a script, applet
or application. A single set of procedures written into the opaque interface and
accessible by the requesting unit enable the requesting unit to interact with the
foreign object systems. The foreign object systems register with the opaque interface.
The registration process for the object systems includes the creation and registration
of a defined set of functions, the format for which is provided by the opaque interface.
The defined set of functions are called by the procedures in the opaque interface
and execute in the object system. The results of the function execution are returned
to the requesting unit thereby extending the foreign object system capabilities
to the requesting unit.