4 ms·

- This sort of thing has existed for a while, and people still use electron [0], [1] - It doesn't come with a DOM implementation, so most existing js libraries

- This sort of thing has existed for a while, and people still use electron [0], [1] - It doesn't come with a DOM implementation, so most existing js libraries won't work. EDIT: actually it does have a DOM implementation, which is awesome - Its API is in C++ - People are lazy [0]: https://github.com/zserge/webview https://github.com/zserge/webview [1]: https://bitbucket.org/chromiumembedded/cef https://bitbucket.org/chromiumembedded/cef

adamjs 8y ago
This thing HAS existed for a while (CEF/Electron, Awesomium, QtWebKit, GTKWebKit, etc.) but the size, memory usage, and flexibility has always been prohibitive. Ultralight addresses all of those through a new, lightweight WebKit fork geared specifically for embedding in other apps. This is a major rewrite and has taken 4+ years to complete. I am the former creator of Awesomium and decided to tackle this issue myself. Also, the library does come with a DOM implementation and most existing JS libraries work just fine.
- supermdguy 8y ago
  Wow, that's awesome that it supports DOM.
rapsey 8y ago
- Being a fresh C++ codebase, god knows what security vulnerabilities and stability issues it has. - D3D 11 and metal required. Most likely huge compatibility/stability/rendering issues across different graphic cards and driver versions. - Barrier to entry is one of the most important factors in a framework/library's success. You can't beat the Electron ecosystem where any idiot can make a cross platform app. This is really only useful for C++ developers.
- adamjs 8y ago
  - The beta is definitely not rock-solid stable yet but reasonably runs a majority of major websites. The current branch of Ultralight is based off of a stable branch of Safari/WebKit. - The Ultralight library itself has no dependencies on D3D11 or Metal. The renderer emits virtual GPU driver commands that are consumed by the user (see GPUDriver.h). We ship a few stock implementations of GPUDriver for major platforms but users can undoubtedly write their own.
  - elcritch 8y ago
    Could this run on OpenGL ES? I know of a few projects running chromium on embedded devices... Something like this could be handy!
    - adamjs 8y ago
      The OpenGL driver is almost complete, it shouldn't be too difficult to port to OpenGL ES. We're definitely interested in targeting embedded devices with this.
      - Klathmon 8y ago
        After that you need to take it full circle and get it to run on WebGL!
- iffycan 8y ago
  > You can't beat the Electron ecosystem where any idiot can make a cross platform app. As an idiot, I can attest to this. I'm constantly looking for lighter weight alternatives, but nothing so far has been nearly as simple as Electron. Here's the list of options I maintain: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dTZIp6z2J1IL7YgBlHG_x68x0_zfecU0MTsjTXn1E3A/edit?usp=sharing https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dTZIp6z2J1IL7YgBlHG_...
  - pknopf 8y ago
    Qml.Net [0] (I'm the author) is a pretty simple way to make a cross platform app. I think it's worth checking out. [0] https://github.com/pauldotknopf/Qml.Net https://github.com/pauldotknopf/Qml.Net
  - iffycan 8y ago
    I should mention that my current favorite (still exploring) is Haxe/OpenFL
kodablah 8y ago
> - This sort of thing has existed for a while, and people still use electron [0], [1] For reference, CEF is not much more lightweight than Electron. It still inherits Chrome's bloat and multiprocess weight. Also, webview only supports IE on Windows which is missing a lot of features.

adamjs 8y ago

This thing HAS existed for a while (CEF/Electron, Awesomium, QtWebKit, GTKWebKit, etc.) but the size, memory usage, and flexibility has always been prohibitive. Ultralight addresses all of those through a new, lightweight WebKit fork geared specifically for embedding in other apps. This is a major rewrite and has taken 4+ years to complete. I am the former creator of Awesomium and decided to tackle this issue myself. Also, the library does come with a DOM implementation and most existing JS libraries work just fine.

supermdguy 8y ago
Wow, that's awesome that it supports DOM.

rapsey 8y ago

- Being a fresh C++ codebase, god knows what security vulnerabilities and stability issues it has. - D3D 11 and metal required. Most likely huge compatibility/stability/rendering issues across different graphic cards and driver versions. - Barrier to entry is one of the most important factors in a framework/library's success. You can't beat the Electron ecosystem where any idiot can make a cross platform app. This is really only useful for C++ developers.

adamjs 8y ago
- The beta is definitely not rock-solid stable yet but reasonably runs a majority of major websites. The current branch of Ultralight is based off of a stable branch of Safari/WebKit. - The Ultralight library itself has no dependencies on D3D11 or Metal. The renderer emits virtual GPU driver commands that are consumed by the user (see GPUDriver.h). We ship a few stock implementations of GPUDriver for major platforms but users can undoubtedly write their own.
- elcritch 8y ago
  Could this run on OpenGL ES? I know of a few projects running chromium on embedded devices... Something like this could be handy!
  - adamjs 8y ago
    The OpenGL driver is almost complete, it shouldn't be too difficult to port to OpenGL ES. We're definitely interested in targeting embedded devices with this.
    - Klathmon 8y ago
      After that you need to take it full circle and get it to run on WebGL!
iffycan 8y ago
> You can't beat the Electron ecosystem where any idiot can make a cross platform app. As an idiot, I can attest to this. I'm constantly looking for lighter weight alternatives, but nothing so far has been nearly as simple as Electron. Here's the list of options I maintain: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dTZIp6z2J1IL7YgBlHG_x68x0_zfecU0MTsjTXn1E3A/edit?usp=sharing https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1dTZIp6z2J1IL7YgBlHG_...
- pknopf 8y ago
  Qml.Net [0] (I'm the author) is a pretty simple way to make a cross platform app. I think it's worth checking out. [0] https://github.com/pauldotknopf/Qml.Net https://github.com/pauldotknopf/Qml.Net
- iffycan 8y ago
  I should mention that my current favorite (still exploring) is Haxe/OpenFL

kodablah 8y ago

> - This sort of thing has existed for a while, and people still use electron [0], [1] For reference, CEF is not much more lightweight than Electron. It still inherits Chrome's bloat and multiprocess weight. Also, webview only supports IE on Windows which is missing a lot of features.