<html lang="en"> <head> <title>GNU Objective-C runtime API - Using the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC)</title> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html"> <meta name="description" content="Using the GNU Compiler Collection (GCC)"> <meta name="generator" content="makeinfo 4.13"> <link title="Top" rel="start" href="index.html#Top"> <link rel="up" href="Objective_002dC.html#Objective_002dC" title="Objective-C"> <link rel="next" href="Executing-code-before-main.html#Executing-code-before-main" title="Executing code before main"> <link href="http://www.gnu.org/software/texinfo/" rel="generator-home" title="Texinfo Homepage"> <!-- Copyright (C) 1988-2015 Free Software Foundation, Inc. Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the Invariant Sections being ``Funding Free Software'', the Front-Cover Texts being (a) (see below), and with the Back-Cover Texts being (b) (see below). A copy of the license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''. (a) The FSF's Front-Cover Text is: A GNU Manual (b) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: You have freedom to copy and modify this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.--> <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css"> <style type="text/css"><!-- pre.display { font-family:inherit } pre.format { font-family:inherit } pre.smalldisplay { font-family:inherit; font-size:smaller } pre.smallformat { font-family:inherit; font-size:smaller } pre.smallexample { font-size:smaller } pre.smalllisp { font-size:smaller } span.sc { font-variant:small-caps } span.roman { font-family:serif; font-weight:normal; } span.sansserif { font-family:sans-serif; font-weight:normal; } --></style> </head> <body> <div class="node"> <a name="GNU-Objective-C-runtime-API"></a> <a name="GNU-Objective_002dC-runtime-API"></a> <p> Next: <a rel="next" accesskey="n" href="Executing-code-before-main.html#Executing-code-before-main">Executing code before main</a>, Up: <a rel="up" accesskey="u" href="Objective_002dC.html#Objective_002dC">Objective-C</a> <hr> </div> <h3 class="section">8.1 GNU Objective-C Runtime API</h3> <p>This section is specific for the GNU Objective-C runtime. If you are using a different runtime, you can skip it. <p>The GNU Objective-C runtime provides an API that allows you to interact with the Objective-C runtime system, querying the live runtime structures and even manipulating them. This allows you for example to inspect and navigate classes, methods and protocols; to define new classes or new methods, and even to modify existing classes or protocols. <p>If you are using a “Foundation” library such as GNUstep-Base, this library will provide you with a rich set of functionality to do most of the inspection tasks, and you probably will only need direct access to the GNU Objective-C runtime API to define new classes or methods. <ul class="menu"> <li><a accesskey="1" href="Modern-GNU-Objective_002dC-runtime-API.html#Modern-GNU-Objective_002dC-runtime-API">Modern GNU Objective-C runtime API</a> <li><a accesskey="2" href="Traditional-GNU-Objective_002dC-runtime-API.html#Traditional-GNU-Objective_002dC-runtime-API">Traditional GNU Objective-C runtime API</a> </ul> <!-- ========================================================================= --> </body></html>