Matt,

If you decide to go with libcurl on this and start work on the proxy bit, I
would be willing to help out and see what we can come up with.

Currently I use old WinInet code on Windows, and was planning to upgrade
this to the latest WinInet simply based on the proxy issue, as the old
WinInet code does not handle the proxy bit.

I would consider libcurl on windows if the proxy bit was working...to bad we
have to include that huge openssl lib.

I have done some of the proxy work for Mac OS X and would be happy to share
any of that code. On Mac OS X I get the proxy, but I do not use the key
chain to get password if it exists.

Let me know what you decide. Maybe it is time to try this on Windows.

Matt Veenstra
tribalmedia

--------- on 7/5/06 5:15 PM, Matt Campbell at mattc_at_freedombox.cc wrote
-----------

> Hello:
>
> I'm trying to decide which is better for desktop applications under
> Windows, libcurl or WinInet. I know about libcurl's portability,
> maturity, flexibility, and speed. However, it seems that WinInet may
> still be better for interactive desktop apps, because it automatically
> handles proxy support. That is, WinInet uses the proxy settings defined
> in the Internet Options control panel, and it can automatically prompt
> the user for proxy authentication when required. Also, if the user is
> behind a proxy that requires NTLM authentication, WinInet seems best
> suited to handle that, since it's the official NTLM implementation on
> the client side.
>
> This issue reminds me of the trade-off between cross-platform GUI
> widgets (e.g. Qt, Gecko, JFC/Swing) and native widgets; the former favor
> consistency across platforms and freedom from platform quirks, while the
> latter ensure consistency *with* the target platform and other apps that
> run on it. With GUI widgets, the advantage of using native facilities
> is not only aesthetic but also practical (e.g. accessibility for users
> with disabilities, which I could discuss at length). Does the same kind
> of trade-off hold for HTTP clients, especially in light of system-wide
> proxy settings and a proprietary authentication method?
>
> I don't want to be antagonistic toward libcurl, but I would appreciate
> thoughts on this subject. Thanks.
Received on 2006-07-07