Chapter 22. Tclkit and Starkits

Tclkit is a version of the Tcl/Tk interpreter that is designed to make packaging and deployment of Tcl applications easy. Tclkit includes Tcl/Tk, [incr Tcl], the Metakit database, and TclVFS. A Starkit is a special file that contains all the scripts and supporting files you need for your Tcl application. This chapter describes how to package and deploy your application as a Starkit.

Tclkit was created by Jean-Claude Wippler as a way to make deploying Tcl applications easier. Tclkit is an extended Tcl interpreter that includes the Metakit database, the [incr Tcl] object-oriented system, and a Virtual File System (VFS). The database is cleverly stored as part of the Tclkit application itself, and the VFS interface is used to make the database look like a private filesystem. Tclkit puts all the scripts normally associated with Tcl and its extensions into this database. The result is a self-contained, single file distribution of Tcl that includes extensions for your GUI, object-oriented programming, a database, and a few other goodies.

Metakit is a fast, transactional database with a simple programming API. Like Tcl, Metakit is a compact, efficient library designed to be embedded into applications. The Tcl interface to Metakit gives you a simple, easy way to manipulate persistent data. Although you do not have to program Metakit directly when using Starkits, this Chapter does provide a short introduction to using Metakit to store data for your application.

A Starkit is a Metakit database file that stores your application. The VFS interface makes this transparent. Tclkit processes the Starkit just like tclsh or wish, and your application doesn't even have to know it is packaged inside a Starkit.

The original Tclkit used an early version of VFS created by Matt Newman. TclVFS was ported to the Tcl core in version 8.4.1 by Vince Darley. Today you can build Tclkit using unmodified Tcl sources. The ActiveTcl distribution includes Metakit, TclVFS and tools to create Starkits, too.