Commands and Queries overview

The original API for PageMaker, introduced with PageMaker 5.0, is known collectively as commands and queries. Commands and queries have a strong connection to PageMaker scripting; commands and queries form the underlying engine that PageMaker calls after parsing script statements.

With PageMaker 7.0, the preferred way to use commands and queries is the C++ wrapper classes (formerly called the "PageMaker Class Library"). This plug-in class library greatly simplifies programming commands and queries. Moreover, it provides a simple framework for plug-ins which handles the basic setup and processing of requests from PageMaker.

Although the number of classes is large (approximately 300), this framework is structurally simple, as this class diagram illustrates. In general, you do not need to understand the internals of the framework classes, although complete source code is included in the SDK. You also do not generally create subclasses of these classes, they are ready to use just as they are.

If you have not used the framework before, you do need to understand its theory of operation before you begin. A brief overview of the PageMaker Class Library is available in Acrobat format in the PCL Overview document. Specific usage information is also available for the command classes and query classes. We strongly recommend reviewing these documents before you begin.


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