# Re: Using Ruby's standard libraries in Silverlight

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/re-using-rubys-standard-libraries-in-silverlight/188120>\
**Category:** IronRuby\
**Created:** [May 6, 2010, 3:26am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/re-using-rubys-standard-libraries-in-silverlight/188120 "2010-05-06T03:26:27Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![jsoho](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@jsoho](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/jsoho)\
**Post date:** [May 6, 2010, 3:26am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/re-using-rubys-standard-libraries-in-silverlight/188120/1 "2010-05-06T03:26:27Z")

</div>

> > > I guess one option would be for them to create a C# project and package their IR code in there. That project could also have the hosting and bootstrapping logic to hooked that module into the rest of the app. That’s certainly the simplest way.

Scott, I don’t think that’s the “simplest way” to take Ruby code and  
dynamically load it in a Silverlight app … especially since it has to  
do with creating a static C# project =P But in all seriousness …

If you want your app to download a ruby library on demand, let’s call it  
a “plugin” for argument sake, then your app needs to have the logic of  
how to find plugins and download them. You seemed to suggest that the  
plugin would do its own loading, but I don’t see that being a  
possibility as your app will need to somehow invoke the plugin to run.  
Anyway, Microsoft.Scripting.Silverlight.dll has logic to download zip  
files and allow for loading files from them, so you can use that  
directly in your app (here I’ve written this in Ruby, but it can be  
easily translated to C# and using the DLR hosting API if that’s what  
your main app is written in):

# disclaimer – this might not work as it’s been only typed

# into email client, so let me know if you have trouble with it.

include System  
include Microsoft::Scripting::Silverlight  
dst = DynamicScriptTags.new nil  
dst.zip\_packages.add Uri.new(“[some-server.com - some server](http://some-server.com/someplugin.zip)”) #  
you can add many zip-packages …  
dst.download\_external\_code(lambda {

# here you can get access to the zip file through Ruby’s

# file-system APIs, and then load those files inside it …

$LOAD\_PATH \<\< “someplugin” # adds someplugin.zip to Ruby’s load path  
require ‘init’ # imagine that plugins have a init.rb file as a  
convention for  
# initialization; this would kick off the loading of  
the plugin  
})

If you don’t want to do the work to implement this, then you can use the  
built-in support for downloading libraries on demand:  
[http://ironpython.net/browser/docs.html#zip-files](http://ironpython.net/browser/docs.html#zip-files). As you can see, this  
is the same idea - from your app pull in this zip file and use Ruby code  
inside it.

Hopefully that enough to get you started, let me know if you have any  
other questions.  
~Jimmy

From: removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid  
[[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)] On Behalf Of Scott Jacobsen  
Sent: Tuesday, May 04, 2010 5:23 PM  
To: removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid  
Subject: [Ironruby-core] unsubscribe

On 05/04/2010 06:03 PM, Miguel Madero wrote:  
Jimmy,

I was thinking more of an scenario where one of the teams in a project  
do one of the modules in IronRuby that would be downloaded on demand.

I guess one option would be for them to create a C# project and package  
their IR code in there. That project could also have the hosting and  
bootstrapping logic to hooked that module into the rest of the app.  
That’s certainly the simplest way. I was thinking to use Chiron to  
download the XAP and let a “ModuleLoader” worry about how hosting it.  
Now that I mentioned it I guess we could do something similar with  
Gestalt.

I will play a bit with both options on the weekend.

Miguel  
On Tue, May 4, 2010 at 3:59 AM, Jimmy S.  
\<removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)\>  
wrote:  
When using IronRuby in a Silverlight app where the main language is C#  
or VB, then you wouldn’t be using Chiron at all. You’d add the script  
files to your Silverlight project, and use the DLR hosting API to run  
them.

You could still use script-tags in this scenario as well; you’d need to  
look at the source for  
Microsoft.Scripting.Silverlight.DynamicApplication and call into its  
initialization logic from your app.

From:  
removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)  
[[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)]  
On Behalf Of Miguel Madero  
Sent: Sunday, May 02, 2010 8:18 PM  
To: removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)  
Subject: Re: [Ironruby-core] Using Ruby’s standard libraries in  
Silverlight

I think the Chiron model is better for different scenarios. You  
mentioned OOB, but also if IronRuby (or other Dynamic Languages) are  
used as part of a statically compiled app where XAPs and assemblies are  
distributed in the typical SL way. Not sure how we would do it with  
Gestal as I’ve seen that it relies on the Script tags. Is there a way of  
doing that programmatically?

On Thu, Apr 1, 2010 at 2:40 PM, Jimmy S.  
\<removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid[mailto:removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid)\>  
wrote:  
Wow, a lot of questions to answer here; let me know if I missed one …

> What is the recommendation for using Ruby’s standard libraries in Silverlight applications?  
> Should the lib be copied to the project dir? should a reference be added to the manifest? some other technique?

Depends on whether your using the Chiron to generate a XAP file, or your  
using dlr.js and embedding Ruby code in the HTML page with script-tags.

Chiron to generate the XAP:  
Just copy the necessary Ruby stdlib files into your XAP file directory.  
If you just want to reference an entire directory, you can use the  
“-path” Chiron.exe option.

Script-tags:

See the IronPython docs on this:  
[http://ironpython.net/browser/docs.html#zip-files](http://ironpython.net/browser/docs.html#zip-files). Basically you must  
have a script-tag like this: . Then you can reference the “lib” directory in  
your scripts, including adding it to the path: .

You can also just list out each Ruby file used:

# foo.rb

require ‘bar’

I hope this shows that script-tags just download the script, and add it  
to the “virtual file-system” that the DLR-languages see. The “defer”  
attribute causes the script to not be run; it will be run when a script  
requires it.

> None of these worked.
> 
> By the way, I see that Chiron loads the zip files…
> 
> What am I doing wrong?

Change the mime-type to application/x-zip-compressed and try requiring  
“test/TestClass” … that will work. We should also allow  
application/zip as the mime-type:  
[http://ironpython.codeplex.com/WorkItem/View.aspx?WorkItemId=26676](http://ironpython.codeplex.com/WorkItem/View.aspx?WorkItemId=26676). Keep  
in mind that Silverlight can only read archived files created with a  
deflate ZIP algorithm; but using Chiron to create the zip file will  
ensure it works … something like “Chiron.exe /d:lib /x:lib.zip”.

> for assemblies you need to add an appmanifest I think

Actually, all the AppManifest.xaml does it load the assemblies for you;  
you can use “require” or “load\_assembly” to accomplish the same thing,  
so I advise against touching the AppManifest.xaml, unless your XAML has  
dependencies on an assembly.

Keep in mind there is no way to have an “assembly script-tag” … you  
must put the assembly in a ZIP file.

> if you put a app\myfile.rb in the zip file, you should be able to do require ‘app/myfile’

Close … you have to use the file filename in the require call, or add  
the zip file name to the path (see example above). Today this only works  
when you use the zip file name without it’s extension, but that’s a bug  
IMO: [http://ironpython.codeplex.com/WorkItem/View.aspx?WorkItemId=26677](http://ironpython.codeplex.com/WorkItem/View.aspx?WorkItemId=26677).

> Which brings up another question - are we willing to “standardize” Gestalt by making it the best practice for using DLR languages in Silverlight?  
> Well on its way; the [http://ironpython.net/browser/](http://ironpython.net/browser/) page only has  
> documentation for the “Gestalt”-way, though the Chiron/XAP model will  
> also be documented. Fun fact: while the first version of Gestalt (0.5)  
> was made completely independently by the  
> [visitmix.com/labs](http://visitmix.com/labs)[http://visitmix.com/labs](http://visitmix.com/labs) team, the 1.0 release was  
> completely rewritten and merged into  
> Microsoft.Scripting.Silverlight.dll. In fact, the current source code on  
> [gestalt.codeplex.com](http://gestalt.codeplex.com)[http://gestalt.codeplex.com/](http://gestalt.codeplex.com/) is only the code from  
> 0.5; the latest source code for Microsoft.Scripting.Silverlight is in  
> IronRuby’s GitHub and IronPython’s CodePlex source repos.  
> Keep in mind the previous Chiron/XAP file model isn’t going away;  
> Gestalt takes [too-must] advantage of how Silverlight expects apps to be  
> structured, so there are some limitations to it. The glaring limitation  
> is you can’t run gestalt apps out-of-browser; HTML doesn’t work there  
> … there might be a way around this by using Silverlight’s ability to  
> host HTML content IN a Silverlight control, but that hasn’t been tested  
> yet. So the Chiron/XAP model will continue to be supported, but I don’t  
> advise using it unless you need to run out-of-browser. You can also  
> combine the two; the IronRuby tutorial uses the Chiron/XAP model for the  
> app, but the Gestalt-way to enable tests running in the browser.  
> ~Jimmy

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