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% File src/library/base/man/taskCallback.Rd

% Part of the R package, http://www.R-project.org

% Copyright 1995-2011 R Core Team

% Distributed under GPL 2 or later

\name{taskCallback}

\alias{addTaskCallback}

\alias{removeTaskCallback}

\title{Add or Remove a Top-Level Task Callback}

\description{

  \code{addTaskCallback} registers an R function

  that is to be called each time a top-level task

  is completed.

  \code{removeTaskCallback} un-registers a function

  that was registered earlier via \code{addTaskCallback}.

  These provide low-level access to the internal/native

  mechanism for managing task-completion actions.

  One can use \code{\link{taskCallbackManager}}

  at the S-language level to manage S functions

  that are called at the completion of each task.

  This is easier and more direct.

}

\usage{

addTaskCallback(f, data = NULL, name = character())

removeTaskCallback(id)

}

\arguments{

  \item{f}{the function that is to be invoked each time a top-level task

    is successfully completed.  This is called with 5 or 4 arguments

    depending on whether \code{data} is specified or not, respectively.

    The return value should be a logical value indicating whether to

    keep the callback in the list of active callbacks or discard it.}

  \item{data}{if specified, this is the 5-th argument in the call to the

    callback function \code{f}.}

  \item{id}{a string or an integer identifying the element in the

    internal callback list to be removed.

    Integer indices are 1-based, i.e the first element is 1.

    The names of currently registered handlers is available

    using \code{\link{getTaskCallbackNames}}

    and is also returned in a call to \code{\link{addTaskCallback}}.

  }

  \item{name}{character: names to be used.}

}

\value{

  \code{addTaskCallback} returns

  an integer value giving  the position in the list

  of task callbacks that this new callback occupies.

  This is only the current position of the callback.

  It can be used to remove the entry as long as

  no other values are removed from earlier positions

  in the list first.

  \code{removeTaskCallback} returns a logical value

  indicating whether the specified element was removed.

  This can fail (i.e., return \code{FALSE})

  if an incorrect name or index is given that does not

  correspond to the name or position of an element in the list.

}

\details{

Top-level tasks are individual expressions

rather than entire lines of input.  Thus an input

line of the form \code{expression1 ; expression2}

will give rise to 2 top-level tasks.

A top-level task callback is called with the expression for the

top-level task, the result of the top-level task, a logical value

indicating whether it was successfully completed or not (always TRUE

at present), and a logical value indicating whether the result was

printed or not.  If the \code{data} argument was specified in the call

to \code{addTaskCallback}, that value is given as the fifth argument.

The callback function should return a logical value.

If the value is FALSE, the callback is removed from the task

list and will not be called again by this mechanism.

If the function returns TRUE, it is kept in the list and

will be called on the completion of the next top-level task.

}

\note{

  There is also C-level access to top-level task callbacks

  to allow C routines rather than R functions be used.

}

\seealso{

  \code{\link{getTaskCallbackNames}}

  \code{\link{taskCallbackManager}}

  \url{http://developer.r-project.org/TaskHandlers.pdf}

}

\examples{

times <- function(total = 3, str = "Task a") {

   ctr <- 0

   function(expr, value, ok, visible) {

    ctr <<- ctr + 1

    cat(str, ctr, "\n")

    if(ctr == total) {

      cat("handler removing itself\n")

    }

    return(ctr < total)

   }

 }

 # add the callback that will work for

 # 4 top-level tasks and then remove itself.

 n <- addTaskCallback(times(4))

 # now remove it, assuming it is still first in the list.

 removeTaskCallback(n)

\dontrun{

# There is no point in running this

# as

 addTaskCallback(times(4))

 sum(1:10)

 sum(1:10)

 sum(1:10)

 sum(1:10)

 sum(1:10)

}

}

\keyword{environment}