Hi, On 09/26/13 00:03, Devin Reade wrote:
- C/C++ source language - graphical client abstraction (thick client, not browser based) - network abstraction - threading abstraction - local disk I/O - minimizing dependencies on any particular window manager - libraries/frameworks that are sufficiently mainstream as to be unlikely to be abandon-ware in five years' time - open source licensed (preferably BSD/Apache style, LGPL would be ok, GPL if necessary)
if you relax the "C++" option and accept "Objective-C", then GNUstep fits perfectly. It works very well on Linux, FreeBSD and I'd say (Sebastian correct me) that NetBSD and OpenBSD are now up to the same level. OpenBSD packages are good.
AppKit is just excellent in terms of UI design and handling. I am using it from graphical visualization to SOAP tools that extract Data from the cloud!
Solaris support is ongoing in case and if you work inside the GNustep implemented APIs, a 100% native port to Mac/Cocoa is really easy. There is also more limited but working Windows support. The APIs work very well, so while you are able to stay insider their abstraction, portability to windows can be realy a matter of little more than recompilation. I can provide examples of tri-platform examples (GS-Mac-Win) ranging from RSS readers, FTP clients to Games to drawing & imaging programs.
Porting to iOS (and even Android with Apportable) is not automatic, but you will have done a good part of the job already.
GNUstep is perhaps not the hype, but has been around many years and it will be for the next.
Riccardo
