Multi-threading support in language

[bigsofty]

Some commands for dealing with multi-core platforms would be nice. Basic thread creation/killing/variable locking. It would be nice to spawn off the odd subroutine to a different core. No small task for Gernot though, I understand but no harm is asking.

[Kitty Hello]

There is an INLINE wrapper for my internal threading functions.
Wait...
oh. I'll attach it.

[attachment deleted by admin]

[WPShadow]

Hier h?tte ich eine kleine Frage:

Funktioniert hier Variablen - ?bergabe zwischen verschiedenen Threads ?berhaupt, oder werden diese als getrennte Module behandelt?

Normalerweise funktioniert es ja nicht, oder?

Gru?

W.

[bigsofty]

There is an INLINE wrapper for my internal threading functions.
Wait...
oh. I'll attach it.

This is really good stuff Gernot, many thanks!

@WPShadow... In the way of a polite request, can we keep a thread in the language that it was started in please, otherwise it gets very confusing for the author...  

[FutureCow]

The idea's cool, but I don't have the foggiest how to make use of it in my programs... 

[WPShadow]

ups, really sorry! I'm very confused at the moment...  

The question for me is, if there's a way to give (for example) an integer from a threat to an other?

[Kitty Hello]

Yes, you can access globals from both threads. But you must make sure that noone's writing to a variable when another one reads from it -> crash.
That for you need "Mutex" objects, that can be used as a lock.

[WPShadow]

Sound's good, I'll try...

[bigsofty]

ups, really sorry! I'm very confused at the moment...  

No problem Amigo!

Gernot, this is one of these in-lines that is SO powerful, that you have got to wonder why its not part of the command set? It would definitely add to the selling power of GLB if it had the line "GLBasic with full Multi-threading Support!".

[Schranz0r]

Mutex are multiplatform , right?

[bigsofty]

careful here!  Before claiming 'full' multi-threading support you need a runtime library that is fully thread-safe.  GLB's runtime library is not.  

Perfectly true, as GLBasic is a cross compiler and GCC has got quite good thread support already, it may (Or may not! ) be a reasonable feature to implement?

[Schranz0r]

You didnt need it for games, i think... 

[metzzo]

If you want big landscapes or a MMO game, you need MultiThreading, otherwise the program would have really bad FPS... Or if you want to load the mediafiles in the background.

[bigsofty]

You didnt need it for games, i think...  

Your right, you don't "need" it to run your game but wouldn't it be preferable to allow the programmer to have the option to use it?

Especially considering how nearly all modern processors are now multi-core?

[MrTAToad]

The big problem would be : Is SDL multi-threaded ?