Hi, gstreamer-devel:     1. The `finalize' function will only be called once. The `dispose' function can be called many times.     2. Usually we use `g_object_unref' or `gst_object_unref'(in gstreamer) to release the object. If the ref_count of this object reaches zero, the `dispose' and `finalize' function will be called(dispose will be called first and you can still ref the object in this function -- in that way, the finalize function will not be called, that's why you can `dispose' many times but only `finalize' once). Refer to the source code of `g_object_unref' for more details.     3. If you have pointers in your element, and I suppose you wanna free the objects which these pointers point to, right? If so, you should call `g_object_unref' to these pointers in your element's finalize function. Eric Zhang <div class="gmail_quote">2008/11/28 Zoltan Seress <<a href="mailto:gatesofdarkness@gmail.com">gatesofdarkness@gmail.com</a>> <blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="border-left: 1px solid rgb(204, 204, 204); margin: 0pt 0pt 0pt 0.8ex; padding-left: 1ex;"> Hi Dev, I know that this is not really a gstreamer specific question, rather GObject, so I read some GObject descriptions about finalize, but I would like to ask it nevertheless. How many times is the finalize function called during the life of a plugin? It is called only once at the destruction of the Class as the pair of the class_init? Is it a problem if I have some pointers as members of my element, but I don't overwrite the finalize function? Or is it called at the destruction of an element too? Thanks! Zoltan Seress ------------------------------------------------------------------------- This SF.Net email is sponsored by the Moblin Your Move Developer's challenge Build the coolest Linux based applications with Moblin SDK & win great prizes Grand prize is a trip for two to an Open Source event anywhere in the world <a href="http://moblin-contest.org/redirect.php?banner_id=100&url=/" target="_blank">http://moblin-contest.org/redirect.php?banner_id=100&url=/</a> _______________________________________________ gstreamer-devel mailing list <a href="mailto:gstreamer-devel@lists.sourceforge.net">gstreamer-devel@lists.sourceforge.net</a> <a href="https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gstreamer-devel" target="_blank">https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/gstreamer-devel</a> </blockquote></div>