ANNOUNCE: libkateutils

Hi all,

I have created a new library, libkateutils, in kdebase/kate.

It is located in kdebase/kate/lib/utils.

The purpose is to allow us to share common classes for plugins and the kate app, in order to avoid duplicated code as well as to achieve a consistent feel within Kate.

Consider it for classes if you think they can be usefull for plugins or the Kate application, or if you find yourself copying a class from somewhere.

To use the libary, add "-lkateutils" to the LIBADD in your Makefile.am and include the headers, which are in $KDEDIR/include/kate/utils, it will look like this:

#include <kate/utils/katemessageview.h>

So far the only classes in the library are
* KateDockViewBase - A base for dock view widgets, providing a title with an 
  optional prefix. See the header for docs.
* KateMessageView - A message view for processes, for example compiler output, 
  code checkers etc. See the header for docs.

I plan to add 
* a KProcess derived class that emits lines from STDOUT/STDIN as they gets
  available (for all kinds of plugins)
* a dialog with a history combo used by the text filter plugin. (Hm, that
  would be usable for the edit command thingy too, should we move the lib to
  kdelibs/kate??)
* The mimetype selection dialog used by the hl configuration page (so that it
  can be used for other things that needs mimetype filters, like plugins).
 

To add classes to the library:
1. mail me, as the maintainer of the library. Note that you must use the
   LGPL licence (or similar, but LGPL is preferred)
2. when we agree, add the class to the library and its Makefile.am (don't 
   forget the header) and make sure it works as expected.
3. Notify the list

Last but not least: check the class while writing plugins for usefull classes.

As usual, comments, questions and suggestions are wellcome.

-anders