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Ask HN: Best Language & Framework for GUI development

2 points by _fvh3 4y ago

Hello, I am looking to make a GUI application for desktop, I want it to be lightweight as it will be running during resource intensive tasks like video rendering etc These are my requirements - Lightweight, shouldn't be resource heavy: below (75 MB Ram) and low CPU & GPU preferably - Language shouldn't have a massive learning curve/ super esoteric - A GUI Desktop app - Possible to make minimalistic but nice looking UI - Frontend and backend same language - Supports cross-platform (Optional) Thank you for reading my post :)

necovek 4y ago
Considering cross-platform support is only "optional", what's the main platform you are targetting?
- _fvh3 4y ago
  Windows
yakorevivan 4y ago
benjifri 4y ago
This looks like a good article / place to start researching: https://geekflare.com/build-desktop-apps-tools/ https://geekflare.com/build-desktop-apps-tools/. I don't know off the top of my head though unfortunately. My first thought is an Electron app but that might be more resource intensive.
Rochus 4y ago
Qt meets all your requirements; everything (GUI code and business logic) can be implemented in moderate C++ (C++ 98 or higher, even "C with classes" style is ok). RAM usage is generally low (< 10 MB for most of my apps). You just need the Qt base package (Core, GUI, Widgets), and version 5 is still good enough. If you prefer C over C++ https://nappgui.com https://nappgui.com is yet another good library.
minhmeoke 4y ago
Lazarus IDE is a strong contender: https://www.lazarus-ide.org/ https://www.lazarus-ide.org/ There are examples and tutorials on https://www.getlazarus.org/ https://www.getlazarus.org/ such as https://github.com/sysrpl/Codebot.SoundShop https://github.com/sysrpl/Codebot.SoundShop Features: - Language: Free Pascal is an Algol-like language which is very similar to C and much simpler than C++ yet still has object-oriented features (Free Pascal has been used in many introductory CS classes since it is easier to teach). - Efficiency: https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Pascal-so-damn-memory-efficient https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Pascal-so-damn-memory-efficient - Very productive integrated development environment, featuring drag and drop form designer. - Cross-Platform: Lazarus can run on Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD, Raspberry Pi, and across many architectures: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Pascal#Targets https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Pascal#Targets - Open Source, yet permissive: Lazarus is GPL/LGPL which permits using it in building commercial projects, unlike QT. - I'm not sure about GPU support in Pascal, you might need to call a C foreign-function interface if you'd like to accelerate operations using CUDA or OpenCL for example. Additional info: - https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=whyuse https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=whyuse - https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=features https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=features

2 points by _fvh3 4y ago

necovek 4y ago

Considering cross-platform support is only "optional", what's the main platform you are targetting?

_fvh3 4y ago
Windows

yakorevivan 4y ago

benjifri 4y ago

This looks like a good article / place to start researching: https://geekflare.com/build-desktop-apps-tools/ https://geekflare.com/build-desktop-apps-tools/. I don't know off the top of my head though unfortunately. My first thought is an Electron app but that might be more resource intensive.

Rochus 4y ago

Qt meets all your requirements; everything (GUI code and business logic) can be implemented in moderate C++ (C++ 98 or higher, even "C with classes" style is ok). RAM usage is generally low (< 10 MB for most of my apps). You just need the Qt base package (Core, GUI, Widgets), and version 5 is still good enough. If you prefer C over C++ https://nappgui.com https://nappgui.com is yet another good library.

minhmeoke 4y ago

Lazarus IDE is a strong contender: https://www.lazarus-ide.org/ https://www.lazarus-ide.org/ There are examples and tutorials on https://www.getlazarus.org/ https://www.getlazarus.org/ such as https://github.com/sysrpl/Codebot.SoundShop https://github.com/sysrpl/Codebot.SoundShop Features: - Language: Free Pascal is an Algol-like language which is very similar to C and much simpler than C++ yet still has object-oriented features (Free Pascal has been used in many introductory CS classes since it is easier to teach). - Efficiency: https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Pascal-so-damn-memory-efficient https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Pascal-so-damn-memory-efficient - Very productive integrated development environment, featuring drag and drop form designer. - Cross-Platform: Lazarus can run on Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD, Raspberry Pi, and across many architectures: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Pascal#Targets https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Pascal#Targets - Open Source, yet permissive: Lazarus is GPL/LGPL which permits using it in building commercial projects, unlike QT. - I'm not sure about GPU support in Pascal, you might need to call a C foreign-function interface if you'd like to accelerate operations using CUDA or OpenCL for example. Additional info: - https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=whyuse https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=whyuse - https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=features https://www.lazarus-ide.org/index.php?page=features