Hello everyone,
I wanted to share with you (once more) the release of Louvre v2.0.0 (C++ library for building Wayland compositors) #linux .
Highlights of the new features:
- Screencasting: Now compatible with PipeWire via xdg-desktop-portal-wlr.
- Session Lock Protocol: Allows for the display of login windows.
- Layer Shell Protocol: For wallpapers, panels, notifications, etc.
- New Input Events API: Enhanced with support for touch events, pointer gestures, and pointer constraints.
If there’s any protocol or functionality you would like to see added, please feel free to suggest it or contribute to its development!
This looks awesome.
Looks like it could be a very good alternative to mutter and kwin.
Questions:
- what about Vulkan instead GL? Should be more performant and use less battery. Especially if it is meant to also work on mobile.
- is Louvre drawing those window decorations?
- there is some overlap with https://github.com/winft/theseus-ship - any idea for a collaboration there?
- there seems to be a company behind, while I didn’t investigate, are there plans for further development that you would publish, is there a way to influence those plans (suggestions, donations, some other way)
- any plans to make a shell around it?
- it is mentioned that this is a library, but obviously there is a working compositor. Regardless if this is a technology demonstrator, would it be possible to publish a compositor with decent theming and a few distinct layer modes (classic windows with taskbar, windows 8 like, Mac, gnome, ubuntu). I guess many smaller Linux DEs would consider it then…
- how does it compare to kwin/mutter?
Thank you :)
what about Vulkan instead GL? Should be more performant and use less battery. Especially if it is meant to also work on mobile.
Yes, I believe I could create a renderer using Vulkan without much difficulty. Initially, I chose GLES2 for compatibility reasons.
is Louvre drawing those window decorations?
Yes, only the decorations with macOS style.
there is some overlap with https://github.com/winft/theseus-ship - any idea for a collaboration there?
Well, that’s a compositor (which uses COMO) and Louvre is a library, so sure, I could collaborate with COMO.
there seems to be a company behind, while I didn’t investigate, are there plans for further development that you would publish, is there a way to influence those plans (suggestions, donations, some other way)
Cuarzo Software is just a name I use to release my open source projects, it’s not a real company. Everyone is welcome to suggest ideas or contribute to the development of these projects, and I genuinely appreciate that.
any plans to make a shell around it?
If time allows me, of course.
it is mentioned that this is a library, but obviously there is a working compositor. Regardless if this is a technology demonstrator, would it be possible to publish a compositor with decent theming and a few distinct layer modes (classic windows with taskbar, windows 8 like, Mac, gnome, ubuntu). I guess many smaller Linux DEs would consider it then…
Absolutely, you’re free to build a compositor however you like, whether it’s in 2D, 3D, or any other style. Essentially, it’s akin to creating a game, with window applications acting as textures.
how does it compare to kwin/mutter?
Those are compositors and Louvre is just a library, so I don’t know how to compare them. As you noticed, the compositor in the video is just one of the examples I made with Louvre.