Documentation/4.0/Developers/Modules
Slicer supports 3 types of modules. While the developer has to choose between one of the 3 types to implement its module, the end user won't notice a difference as they all share the look&feel. The choice for a given type of module is usually based on the type of inputs/parameters for a given module.
Command Line Interface (CLI)
CLIs are standalone executables with a limited input/output arguments complexity (simple argument types, no user interactions...). They are typically implemented using ITK.
- Shared lib or executable
- GUI automatically generated
- Links:
- Slicer3 execution model (Slicer4 is similar)
Loadable Modules
Loadable modules are C++ plugins that are built against Slicer. They define custom GUIs for their specific behavior as they have full control over the application.
- C++ shared library
- Full control over the GUI (Qt) and Slicer internals (MRML, logics, display managers...)
- Optimized for heavy computations
- Links:
Scripted Modules
Scripted modules are written in Python and typically but not necessarily use the high level API of Slicer and toolkits.
- Python Console
- Full access to the API: VTK, ITK, MRML, Qt and Slicer are fully wrapped
- Recommended for fast prototyping
- Links:
