Hi, Can we use the object dispatch layer as a library? Or should we copy (or submodule) the object dispatch layer to apache/arrow?
If we can use the object dispatch layer as a library, we can just use it as an external library like GoogleTest. We don't need IP clearance. You can use any Apache License 2.0 compatible license for the object dispatch layer. Thanks, -- kou In <mn2pr05mb6496cff053c60e54c133c93cae...@mn2pr05mb6496.namprd05.prod.outlook.com> "[MATLAB] Integrating a framework for connecting MATLAB and C++ objects using MEX" on Tue, 7 Jun 2022 18:10:43 +0000, Kevin Gurney <kgur...@mathworks.com> wrote: > Hi All, > > I am reaching out to seek guidance from the community regarding a code > integration puzzle. > > The architecture that we are currently pursuing for the MATLAB interface to > Arrow [1] involves dispatching to the Arrow C++ libraries using MEX (a MATLAB > facility for calling C/C++ code [2]). A major challenge with this approach > has been keeping Arrow C++ objects (e.g. arrow::Array) alive in memory for > the appropriate amount of time and making it easy to interface with them from > MATLAB. > > MATLAB has a recommended solution for this problem [3]. However, we've been > pursuing a MEX-based solution due to the pervasiveness of MEX and its > familiarity to MATLAB users. Our hope is that using MEX will make it easy for > others to contribute to the MATLAB interface. > > To help maintain the connection between MATLAB objects and C++, we've been > experimenting with a MEX-based object dispatch layer. The primary goal of > this work is to unblock development of the MATLAB interface to Arrow. > However, this object dispatch layer is non-trivial and ultimately unrelated > to the Arrow project's core mission. Therefore, submitting this code to the > Arrow project doesn't seem like the optimal code integration strategy. > > We’ve been considering the possibility of creating a new open-source > repository under the MathWorks GitHub organization [4] to host the object > dispatch layer (a side effect of this approach is that it may help encourage > reuse of this infrastructure in future open-source MATLAB projects). > > However, this approach would come with notable tradeoffs: > > 1. We would need to follow the ASF IP Clearance Process [5] to integrate this > code into the Arrow project (it's possible we are mistaken about this). > > 2. It's not obvious how we should keep the code in sync. Would it be possible > to use a git submodule [6] to "symlink" to the external repo? > > 3. What about licensing? Does the code need to be Apache licensed, or would > it be possible to use another Apache-compatible license [7], like BSD? BSD is > the default choice for new projects hosted under the MathWorks GitHub > organization. > > Admittedly, we aren't sure what the best path forward is, so we appreciate > the community's guidance. We welcome any suggestions. > > [1] https://github.com/apache/arrow/tree/master/matlab > [2] https://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/call-mex-files-1.html > [3] > https://www.mathworks.com/help/matlab/build-matlab-interface-to-c-library.html > [4] https://github.com/mathworks > [5] https://incubator.apache.org/ip-clearance/ > [6] https://github.blog/2016-02-01-working-with-submodules/ > [7] https://www.apache.org/legal/resolved.html#category-a > > Thank you, > > Kevin Gurney
