About Dynamic Data Exchange

The Microsoft® Win32® application programming interface (API) provides several methods for transferring data between applications. One method is to use the Win32 dynamic data exchange (DDE) protocol. The DDE protocol is a set of messages and guidelines. It sends messages between applications that share data and uses shared memory to exchange data between applications. Applications can use the DDE protocol for one-time data transfers and for continuous exchanges in which applications send updates to one another as new data becomes available.

The Win32 API also includes the Dynamic Data Exchange Management Library (DDEML). The DDEML is a dynamic-link library (DLL) that Win32-based applications can use to share data. The DDEML provides functions and messages that simplify the task of adding DDE capability to a Win32-based application. Instead of sending, posting, and processing DDE messages directly, an application uses the DDEML functions to manage DDE conversations. (A DDE conversation is the interaction between client and server applications.)

The DDEML also provides a facility for managing the strings and data that DDE applications share. Instead of using atoms and pointers to shared memory objects, DDE applications create and exchange string handles, which identify strings, and data handles, which identify memory objects. The DDEML also makes it possible for a server application to register the service names it supports. The names are broadcast to other applications in the system, which can use the names to connect to the server. Moreover, the DDEML ensures compatibility among DDE applications by forcing them to implement the DDE protocol in a consistent manner.

Existing applications that use the message-based DDE protocol are fully compatible with those that use the DDEML. That is, an application that uses message-based DDE can establish conversations and perform transactions with applications that use the DDEML. Because of the many advantages of the DDEML, new applications should use it rather than the DDE messages. To use the API elements of the DDEML, you must include the DDEML header file in your source files, link with the DDEML library, and ensure that the DDEML dynamic-link library is in the system's search path.