Quoting his entire text for the benefit of Mr Dietrich, who is apparently having trouble reading it. (He's right though, plain text is a lot easier to work with.)
On Sat, Dec 1, 2012 at 8:51 PM, Steve Simmons <square.st...@gmail.com> wrote: > First time post - be gentle with me :-) > > I am trying to write a Python script to access a scanning device. I have an > SDK for the scanner but the documentation is a bit limited and the supplier > doesn't support Python (but Python is the best option for me in the current > circumstances). > > The SDK revolves around a .dll file that is described as a 'COM Object' but > the text also implies that it can be accessed directly - "If you don’t use > the COM interface in your application and use the SDK files directly like in > VC++ then you don’t need to install these files on the destination > computer". If I look inside the .dll (thanks PE Explorer!), I see > DllCanUnload, DllGetClassObject, DllRegisterServer and DllUnregisterServer > in the 'Export' view. If I look at the 'Import' view, I can see the names > of a bunch of .dll files and the names of the functions/methods I want to > call. So I concluded that DllGetClassObject would be my friend. > > However, I've read various tutorials on using .dll and COM (ctypes, > comtypes, and the Python documentation) and I've ended up more confused than > when I started. I expected to be using COM but all the examples seem to > revolve around automating excel or outlook. > > I'd be really grateful for some hints on what direction I should be headed > and a pointer to a relevant tutorial. > > Simmo Yeah, ctypes isn't all that easy to work with I'm afraid. Ultimately, your problem is with your scanner's SDK; if it's poorly documented, it's not going to be any easier working from Python than it would be from C. I would advise following their non-COM instructions as closely as you can, and seeing where that leads you. If their docs are online, post us a link; it's possible someone here may be familiar with it, or at very least be able to help you with the translation to Python. Good luck! ChrisA -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list