Basically, an External Method is a way of drawing in a function from an external Python file into Zope's object hierarchy. Zope Folders can hold different types of behavior objects or "methods." External Methods are one of a number of ways to create methods. Other method types include DTML Methods, and SQL Methods.
In programmer's terminology, a method is a function that is bound to an object. This is exactly how External Methods work. External Methods are Python functions which are not stored in Zope's database, but are defined in external files. When you create an External Method object with Zope's management interface, you bind that external function to the current Folder. Since the external function is bound to the Folder, it can be called a method .
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