From: Martin DeMello <martindemello@...>
Date: 2005-04-09T05:29:40+09:00
Subject: Detecting thread exit immediately

From the fxirb code:

class FXIrb < FXText
  include Singleton
  include Responder
 
  attr_reader :input
 
  def FXIrb.init(p, tgt, sel, opts)
    unless @__instance__
      Thread.critical = true
      begin
        @__instance__ ||= new(p, tgt, sel, opts)
      ensure
        Thread.critical = false
      end
    end
    return @__instance__
  end
 
  def create
    super
    setFocus
    # IRB initialization
    @inputAdded = 0
    @input = IO.pipe
    $DEFAULT_OUTPUT = self
 
    @im = FXIRBInputMethod.new
    @irb = Thread.new {
      IRB.start_in_fxirb(@im)
      
      #------------------------------
      #  INSERT CODE HERE
      #------------------------------
    }
  end

# -------------------------------------------------------------

I want to put something in INSERT CODE HERE that will call a method in
the main thread when IRB.start_in_fxirb returns (i.e. just before the
other thread dies), rather than having to wait for the GC to collect the
the thread and then put in a check for @irb.alive?. Is there any good
way to do this? (What I'm trying to do is have some way for the fxirb
widget to notify the program containing it that the irb session has
ended. Right now my choices seem to be to call exit (exits everything),
to sleep(briefly) after I call @irb.run, and then check @irb.alive?
(annnoying), to call GC.start everytime I call @irb.run and then check
@irb.alive? (also annoying), or to have the thread itself notify
something when it dies (but I can't quite think of how to do it).)

martin