15.3.3 Unix/Windows User Interface Library
Some programs' main interaction with the operating system is drawing on
the screen. It is often possible to write such programs using a cross
platform user interface library.
A cross-platform user interface library is a library providing basic
windowing functions which has been implemented separately for Unix and
Windows. The program calls generic routines which are translated into
the appropriate calls on each platform. These libraries generally
provide a good look and feel on each platform, so this can be a
reasonable approach for programs which do not require additional
services from the system.
The main disadvantage is the least common denominator effect: the
libraries often only provide functionality which is available on both
Unix and Windows. Features specific to either Unix or Windows may be
very useful for the program, but they may not be available via the
library.
|