Understanding Signals

Signals are how different parts of Poriscope talk to each other — cleanly, asynchronously, and without tight coupling.

What Is a Signal?

In Qt (and in Poriscope), a signal is a way to notify that “something happened.” Think of it like shouting a message into a room — anyone listening can choose to respond, but you don’t need to know who they are.

It’s perfect for building modular apps, where components shouldn’t directly depend on one another.

Imagine a Walkie-Talkie System

You’re on a big hike with friends. You don’t shout — you use a walkie-talkie.

• Channel 1 is used by the whole group (like Global Signal)

• Channel 2 is just for hikers who deal with maps and routes (like Data Plugin Controller Signal)

Now, if you say “Need help!” on Channel 1, anyone can respond. If you say “Send new coordinates” on Channel 2, only the navigator listens.

This is exactly how Poriscope uses signals:

• Global Signal is shared across all plugins for broad, app-wide communication.

• Data Plugin Controller Signal is focused and used to manage data plugin logic specifically.

• Each signal goes through the MainController, which acts like the central relay tower.

Why This Matters

You don’t want your plugin to know who’s listening — you just want to say, “I need the trace data,” and let the system handle the rest.

This approach:

• Keeps your code clean and modular

• Avoids tangled dependencies

• Makes your plugin easier to test, reuse, and debug

So yes — signals may seem abstract at first, but they’re your best friends when building scalable tools in Poriscope.

Note

For in-depth usage and examples, see Global Signal and Data Plugin Controller Signal.