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One suggestion for improvement: Like so many other web pages for fancy new frameworks and libraries, the github page does not really explain what Flutter is and

One suggestion for improvement: Like so many other web pages for fancy new frameworks and libraries, the github page does not really explain what Flutter is and what problems the Go library can solve. Can I make a cross-platform GUI with it (a) in the current state, (b) maybe later? If so, what features does it support? How does it compare to Qt, Lazarus, Sciter, Elektron, etc? Does it have internal drag & drop? External drag & drop? Standard file and folder dialogs? Are widgets native or not (I suppose not, but it should be clear from a glance at the page)? Which widgets are supported? Does it have rich text support? Does it have OS-level clipboard support? Does it have transitions or not? Is it themeable? Is it fast? How large are executables built with it? Is it intended for ease of use or somewhat complicated? Do I need to write in other languages (HTML, markup, Javascript) to get things done or can everything be written directly in Go? All of this is absolutely essential information. Nobody can reasonably decide whether to use this GUI toolkit or not without getting answers to all of the above question. So please, please explain in one sentence what Flutter is and make a section with keyword features. [Please don't take this wrong, I'm not a naysayer. This is meant as a constructive criticism, not just of this page but of many similar ones. It sure looks like an interesting project.]

noninc 8y ago
This is a very good point, I think. I would say for every product that is in a well defined category (like GUI toolkit) there is a default set of FAQ that an intro for it should answer. Maybe it would be a good idea to create an issue with a template of those FAQ, so other projects can use them as well.
ausjke 8y ago
Very constructive indeed. For cross-platform GUI I have investigated flutter(among others, flutter at the moment is really just mobile only, so does Kivy) It appears to produce a commercial quality cross-platform GUI, with not-so-bad looking, your only choice is Qt, be it Pyside2 or Qt/C++. For me I decide to use Pyside2.
- ausjke 8y ago
  Another way to do true cross-platform Desktop GUI will be leveraging browser on MacOS/Linux/Win, you put your core logic in GO which runs as a local http-server on your Desktop that talks to your OS underneath, and use browser/html/css/javascript to do the UI. You only need ship the GO binary, users install it and then starting to use your program via a browser.
  - bobwaycott 8y ago
    That sounds nothing like “true cross-platform GUI” to me.
- srikz 8y ago
  I ended up choosing Dear ImGui recently https://github.com/ocornut/imgui https://github.com/ocornut/imgui
- solarkraft 8y ago
  > flutter at the moment is really just mobile only, so does Kivy I can't parse that. I know for certain that kivy runs very well on desktop platforms.
  - ausjke 8y ago
    not really, it's more like running an apps on Desktop, you only have one window for example
- Const-me 8y ago
  Depends on the complexity of the GUI you need and on other factors. QT is OK if your GUI is very complex and you're targeting a desktop OS. For simple GUI QT is just too big. For GUIs without a desktop OS (mobile, embedded), QT is not a good fit either, not enough mobile support, and their embedded license can be prohibitively expensive. I have positive experience building moderately complex commercial quality GUIs on top of this: https://github.com/memononen/nanovg https://github.com/memononen/nanovg
outworlder 8y ago
I had the same issue. "Go Flutter desktop embedder". Well, that's that? Click (https://github.com/flutter/flutter/wiki/Custom-Flutter-Engine-Embedders https://github.com/flutter/flutter/wiki/Custom-Flutter-Engin...) "The Flutter Engine is window toolkit agnostic. " What's flutter engine? Click (https://github.com/google/flutter-desktop-embedding https://github.com/google/flutter-desktop-embedding) "The purpose of this project is to support building applications that use Flutter " Ok, but what's Flutter? Click (https://github.com/flutter/flutter https://github.com/flutter/flutter) "Flutter is Google’s mobile app SDK for crafting high-quality native interfaces on iOS and Android in record time." OOOOH. Ok.
- true_religion 8y ago
  But what is Android and iOS? What is an SDK? There is only so deep the rabbit hole can go. They chose to stop the explanation at Flutter and I don't blame them. If you aren't already using Flutter, this won't help you as you now have to go learn a whole other library first.
- politician 8y ago
  "Flutter is a cross-platform UI toolkit that aims for pixel-perfect, native look and feel on each platform while minimizing code differences." Does that help?
  - pkaye 8y ago
    Does it work similarly on desktop platforms?
    - politician 8y ago
      Not to my knowledge, I think right now it's just iOS and Android.
mrkurt 8y ago
It's safe to say that if you aren't already interested in Flutter, you probably don't need to pay much attention to this project.
- bobwaycott 8y ago
  Unless of course you don’t know that Flutter exists but are very much working in that problem space.
  - coldtea 8y ago
    If you're working in that problem space, you should already have seen news about Flutter...
    - bobwaycott 8y ago
      One would think, but it isn't inherently unreasonable that someone wouldn't.
      - mrkurt 8y ago
        It's definitely ok to not know what flutter is. It seems a little unreasonable to expect specialized projects to define everything from the ground up, though.
        bobwaycott 8y ago
        100% agree. Haven’t been trying to suggest otherwise. Firmly in the camp that mentioning Flutter is more than enough, and discovering what it is should be left as an exercise for the reader. This all started because I was mildly disputing that this was only of interest to someone already interested in Flutter itself, as opposed to the problem space.

noninc 8y ago

This is a very good point, I think. I would say for every product that is in a well defined category (like GUI toolkit) there is a default set of FAQ that an intro for it should answer. Maybe it would be a good idea to create an issue with a template of those FAQ, so other projects can use them as well.

ausjke 8y ago

Very constructive indeed. For cross-platform GUI I have investigated flutter(among others, flutter at the moment is really just mobile only, so does Kivy) It appears to produce a commercial quality cross-platform GUI, with not-so-bad looking, your only choice is Qt, be it Pyside2 or Qt/C++. For me I decide to use Pyside2.

ausjke 8y ago
Another way to do true cross-platform Desktop GUI will be leveraging browser on MacOS/Linux/Win, you put your core logic in GO which runs as a local http-server on your Desktop that talks to your OS underneath, and use browser/html/css/javascript to do the UI. You only need ship the GO binary, users install it and then starting to use your program via a browser.
- bobwaycott 8y ago
  That sounds nothing like “true cross-platform GUI” to me.
srikz 8y ago
I ended up choosing Dear ImGui recently https://github.com/ocornut/imgui https://github.com/ocornut/imgui
solarkraft 8y ago
> flutter at the moment is really just mobile only, so does Kivy I can't parse that. I know for certain that kivy runs very well on desktop platforms.
- ausjke 8y ago
  not really, it's more like running an apps on Desktop, you only have one window for example
Const-me 8y ago
Depends on the complexity of the GUI you need and on other factors. QT is OK if your GUI is very complex and you're targeting a desktop OS. For simple GUI QT is just too big. For GUIs without a desktop OS (mobile, embedded), QT is not a good fit either, not enough mobile support, and their embedded license can be prohibitively expensive. I have positive experience building moderately complex commercial quality GUIs on top of this: https://github.com/memononen/nanovg https://github.com/memononen/nanovg

outworlder 8y ago

I had the same issue. "Go Flutter desktop embedder". Well, that's that? Click (https://github.com/flutter/flutter/wiki/Custom-Flutter-Engine-Embedders https://github.com/flutter/flutter/wiki/Custom-Flutter-Engin...) "The Flutter Engine is window toolkit agnostic. " What's flutter engine? Click (https://github.com/google/flutter-desktop-embedding https://github.com/google/flutter-desktop-embedding) "The purpose of this project is to support building applications that use Flutter " Ok, but what's Flutter? Click (https://github.com/flutter/flutter https://github.com/flutter/flutter) "Flutter is Google’s mobile app SDK for crafting high-quality native interfaces on iOS and Android in record time." OOOOH. Ok.

true_religion 8y ago
But what is Android and iOS? What is an SDK? There is only so deep the rabbit hole can go. They chose to stop the explanation at Flutter and I don't blame them. If you aren't already using Flutter, this won't help you as you now have to go learn a whole other library first.
politician 8y ago
"Flutter is a cross-platform UI toolkit that aims for pixel-perfect, native look and feel on each platform while minimizing code differences." Does that help?
- pkaye 8y ago
  Does it work similarly on desktop platforms?
  - politician 8y ago
    Not to my knowledge, I think right now it's just iOS and Android.

mrkurt 8y ago

It's safe to say that if you aren't already interested in Flutter, you probably don't need to pay much attention to this project.

bobwaycott 8y ago
Unless of course you don’t know that Flutter exists but are very much working in that problem space.
- coldtea 8y ago
  If you're working in that problem space, you should already have seen news about Flutter...
  - bobwaycott 8y ago
    One would think, but it isn't inherently unreasonable that someone wouldn't.
    - mrkurt 8y ago
      It's definitely ok to not know what flutter is. It seems a little unreasonable to expect specialized projects to define everything from the ground up, though.
      - bobwaycott 8y ago
        100% agree. Haven’t been trying to suggest otherwise. Firmly in the camp that mentioning Flutter is more than enough, and discovering what it is should be left as an exercise for the reader. This all started because I was mildly disputing that this was only of interest to someone already interested in Flutter itself, as opposed to the problem space.