Ebook: Fundamentals of X Programming: Graphical User Interfaces and Beyond

This book provides an overview of the X Window System focusing on characteristics that have significant impact on the development of both application programs and widgets. We pay special attention to applications that go beyond graphical user interfaces (GUIs); therefore we discuss issues affecting video games, visualization and imaging programs, and designing widgets with a complex appearance. While the book does not assume previous knowledge of X, it is intended for experienced programmers, especially those who want to write programs that go beyond simple GUIs. X is the dominant window system under Unix, and X servers are available for Microsoft Windows, thus enabling graphics over a network in the PC world. While Java offers an apparently universal graphics library (the abstract window toolkit), the reality is quite different: For high-quality graphics and image display, we must program on the target platform itself (X or one of Microsoft’s APIs) rather than rely on Java peer objects. X is a vast subject, so it is impossible to provide a complete coverage in a few hundred pages. Thus we selected topics that are fundamental to the system, so that the reader who masters them should be able to read the documentation of the numerous libraries and toolkits. Therefore we provide documentation on the most important Xlib and X toolkit functions only.

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The X is the dominant window system under Unix, and X servers are available for Microsoft Windows, thus enabling graphics over a network in the PC world. This book provides an overview of the X Window System, focusing on characteristics that have significant impact on the development of both application programs and widgets. It pays special attention to applications that go beyond graphical user interfaces (GUIs), such as visualization and imaging programs; issues affecting video games; and designing widgets with a complex appearance. While the book does not assume previous knowledge of X, it is intended for experienced programmers, especially those who want to write programs that go beyond simple GUIs.

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The X is the dominant window system under Unix, and X servers are available for Microsoft Windows, thus enabling graphics over a network in the PC world. This book provides an overview of the X Window System, focusing on characteristics that have significant impact on the development of both application programs and widgets. It pays special attention to applications that go beyond graphical user interfaces (GUIs), such as visualization and imaging programs; issues affecting video games; and designing widgets with a complex appearance. While the book does not assume previous knowledge of X, it is intended for experienced programmers, especially those who want to write programs that go beyond simple GUIs.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xvii
Introduction....Pages 1-23
Fundamentals of the X Window System....Pages 25-58
Introduction to the X Toolkit....Pages 59-93
Event Handling in the X Toolkit....Pages 95-134
Programming with Widgets....Pages 135-172
Constraint and Compound Widgets....Pages 173-196
Text and Dialog Widgets....Pages 197-213
Drawing Operations....Pages 215-248
Color and Images....Pages 249-279
Selections....Pages 281-301
Writing Widgets....Pages 303-331
Examples of Widget Implementation....Pages 333-358
Back Matter....Pages 359-374

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The X is the dominant window system under Unix, and X servers are available for Microsoft Windows, thus enabling graphics over a network in the PC world. This book provides an overview of the X Window System, focusing on characteristics that have significant impact on the development of both application programs and widgets. It pays special attention to applications that go beyond graphical user interfaces (GUIs), such as visualization and imaging programs; issues affecting video games; and designing widgets with a complex appearance. While the book does not assume previous knowledge of X, it is intended for experienced programmers, especially those who want to write programs that go beyond simple GUIs.
Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xvii
Introduction....Pages 1-23
Fundamentals of the X Window System....Pages 25-58
Introduction to the X Toolkit....Pages 59-93
Event Handling in the X Toolkit....Pages 95-134
Programming with Widgets....Pages 135-172
Constraint and Compound Widgets....Pages 173-196
Text and Dialog Widgets....Pages 197-213
Drawing Operations....Pages 215-248
Color and Images....Pages 249-279
Selections....Pages 281-301
Writing Widgets....Pages 303-331
Examples of Widget Implementation....Pages 333-358
Back Matter....Pages 359-374
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