Programming Forums > Application Development > C++

Jimbo · May 24th, 2006, 2:34 AM

I've decided that I should finally get my arse in gear and make some programs with GUIs in C++. As I've mostly moved to Linux for my personal development, I was wondering how many of you have experience with Qt, GTK, and whatever else is out there (and if there are others worth mentioning, please do). I tried googling around, and what I've read so far indicated that Qt takes a bit less coding at the cost of either purchasing a commercial license or releasing under the GPL (which isn't a big deal). There was also a few mentions that GTK requires one to wrap C code for usage in C++, whereas Qt is done in C++ to begin with. I didn't really see anything that compared their features or even their structure except to say that they were similar. So overall, I'm leaning towards Qt...

Does anyone have anything else to offer about one, the other, or both?

Thanks.

Arevos · May 24th, 2006, 4:05 AM

Qt integrates better with native Windows widgets; other than that, I think you covered all of the pros and cons of both systems.

Ooble · May 24th, 2006, 1:21 PM

I think Qt's better structured and prettier. The downside is, of course, the whole licensing thing. If you're not bothered about that, I would suggest going for it.

Game_Ender · May 24th, 2006, 11:39 PM

You should give a look at wxWidgets, it uses native widgets instead of drawing its own (like QT does) and it doesn't have any licensing issues. It also has plenty of tools tools.

Soulstorm · May 25th, 2006, 4:26 AM

As ooble said, the most annoying thing with Qt is the license. If you just want to exercise in Qt, without worrying about releasing your work to the public, then Qt openSource is the right version for you, unless you have thousands of dollars to spend.

If you have OS X, I think Qt is the way to go, although the installation procedure should have been covered with more information...

Arevos · May 25th, 2006, 6:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Game_Ender

You should give a look at wxWidgets, it uses native widgets instead of drawing its own (like QT does) and it doesn't have any licensing issues.

It's a bit flakey, though. GUIs created with wxWidgets have an amateurish (for want of a better word) taint to them, I've found. Qt seems, internally and externally, a lot more robust.

Game_Ender · May 25th, 2006, 9:45 AM

I don't know where you are getting that feeling from. What application have you used that gave you that feeling, are you sure it was wxWidgets that made the application flaky, not bad coding?

Epic uses wxWidgets for its UnrealEd, while Audacity, Code::Blocks, DialogBlocks, and wxDesigner don't feel flaky at all. I have used plenty of QT in KDE and that setting feels fine, I really don't know of any QT application I have used on OS X or Windows.

Jessehk · May 25th, 2006, 5:01 PM

The Qt documentation is amazing. It is the a joy to quickly get the information you need.

Example: http://doc.trolltech.com/4.1/qpushbutton.html
There are also lots of tutorials and examples.

sunnypalsingh · May 26th, 2006, 10:29 PM

I guess
QT can only be used from C++ whereas GTK it possible to use from any language.
What say??

coldDeath · May 27th, 2006, 3:18 AM

You can use Qt in Python, I've done it before.

May 24th, 2006, 2:34 AM	#1
Jimbo Battle Programmer Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Bellevue, WA, USA Posts: 770 Rep Power: 3	Qt vs GTK I've decided that I should finally get my arse in gear and make some programs with GUIs in C++. As I've mostly moved to Linux for my personal development, I was wondering how many of you have experience with Qt, GTK, and whatever else is out there (and if there are others worth mentioning, please do). I tried googling around, and what I've read so far indicated that Qt takes a bit less coding at the cost of either purchasing a commercial license or releasing under the GPL (which isn't a big deal). There was also a few mentions that GTK requires one to wrap C code for usage in C++, whereas Qt is done in C++ to begin with. I didn't really see anything that compared their features or even their structure except to say that they were similar. So overall, I'm leaning towards Qt... Does anyone have anything else to offer about one, the other, or both? Thanks.

May 24th, 2006, 1:21 PM	#3
Ooble I eat cake for breakfast. Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: In my box. Posts: 4,434 Rep Power: 9	I think Qt's better structured and prettier. The downside is, of course, the whole licensing thing. If you're not bothered about that, I would suggest going for it. __________________ Me :: You :: Them

May 25th, 2006, 4:26 AM	#5
Soulstorm Hobbyist Programmer Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Menidi, Athens, Greece Posts: 243 Rep Power: 3	As ooble said, the most annoying thing with Qt is the license. If you just want to exercise in Qt, without worrying about releasing your work to the public, then Qt openSource is the right version for you, unless you have thousands of dollars to spend. If you have OS X, I think Qt is the way to go, although the installation procedure should have been covered with more information... __________________ Project::Soulstorm (personal homepage)

May 25th, 2006, 5:01 PM	#8
Jessehk The Oblivious One Join Date: May 2005 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 648 Rep Power: 4	The Qt documentation is amazing. It is the a joy to quickly get the information you need. Example: http://doc.trolltech.com/4.1/qpushbutton.html There are also lots of tutorials and examples. __________________ Dr. Zoidberg: [ecstatic] I'm going to a movie... with FRIENDS!

May 26th, 2006, 10:29 PM	#9
sunnypalsingh Programmer Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 33 Rep Power: 0	I guess QT can only be used from C++ whereas GTK it possible to use from any language. What say?? __________________ The only real valuable thing is intuition. -Albert Einstein

May 24th, 2006, 4:05 AM	#2
Arevos Programming Guru Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: England Posts: 1,499 Rep Power: 5	Qt integrates better with native Windows widgets; other than that, I think you covered all of the pros and cons of both systems.

May 24th, 2006, 11:39 PM	#4
Game_Ender Professional Programmer Join Date: May 2006 Location: Maryland, USA Posts: 306 Rep Power: 3	You should give a look at wxWidgets, it uses native widgets instead of drawing its own (like QT does) and it doesn't have any licensing issues. It also has plenty of tools tools.

May 25th, 2006, 9:45 AM	#7
Game_Ender Professional Programmer Join Date: May 2006 Location: Maryland, USA Posts: 306 Rep Power: 3	I don't know where you are getting that feeling from. What application have you used that gave you that feeling, are you sure it was wxWidgets that made the application flaky, not bad coding? Epic uses wxWidgets for its UnrealEd, while Audacity, Code::Blocks, DialogBlocks, and wxDesigner don't feel flaky at all. I have used plenty of QT in KDE and that setting feels fine, I really don't know of any QT application I have used on OS X or Windows.

May 27th, 2006, 3:18 AM	#10
coldDeath Expert Programmer Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: UK Posts: 862 Rep Power: 4	You can use Qt in Python, I've done it before. __________________ Programming Tutorials - Linux Installation Guide - Learn Python - Learn C++ Got Slack? Join us at #programmingforums @ irc.freenode.net! My software never has bugs. It just develops random features.

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Programming Forums > Application Development > C++

Qt vs GTK