My main application uses SDL (w/ OpenGL rendering), in C++. All of my world data is in XML format. I need to make some sort of editor to allow easier world creation. I seem to be totally stuck when deciding which route to go. - Building the editor into the engine with wxWidgets seems like it would be nice, but I can't seem to figure out how to integrate all 3 (SDL, OpenGL, and wxWidgets). Searching google, it seems many other people have run into this same issue. The only solution I've found is SDL + wxWidgets with software rendering. - Building a stand-alone editor in C#. This allows easy form creation. But the problem is that I have to re-write all of my rendering code, XML parsing code, etc, into C#. For this solution, I would do C# + SDL, and do software rendering. - Building a stand-alone editor in C++. GUI creation is slightly more painstaking, but I can keep all of my written XML/rendering code. I would just use SDL + wxWidgets and do software rendering. This seems like the best option so far, but it is not satisfying: if I am going through the trouble of taking the editor out of my engine, I would love to go the C# route in order to ease GUI production. Any advice? Very frustrating so far !

Sorry. 2D, tile-based game. I already have a fairly robust XML data format for all the necessary features.

wxWidgets is pretty flexible, and I know it can work in conjunction with OpenGL. What specific problems are introduced by SDL? Going the C# route sounds bad... lots of glue code to connect your C++ to C# with CLI... possible, but error-prone, tedious, etc.

Why can't you use WxWidgets and OpenGL, what does SDL give you in the editor?

But for me, I might consider the C# way.

Have you looked at the tile-based editors that already exist?

Look into Trolltech Qt.
It's so easy, has built in opengl support/widgets + shitload of 2d graphics stuff and it is cross-platform!

It has also a great documentation collection

edit: There's also a XML module!

[Edited by - zeeli on April 8, 2009 8:58:06 AM]

If you're considering wxWidgets, you might want to take a look at IUP ( http://www.tecgraf.puc-rio.br/iup/ ). It's smaller, simpler, and easier to use. It's not built on top of SDL, so you would have to use the input callbacks provided from the library. It integrates with OpenGL fairly easily.

Also, here's give a nice comparison some of the more popular GUI libraries:

http://www.tecgraf.puc-rio.br/iup/en/toolkits.html

If you are using Wx what would you use SDL for? Wx already provides everything SDL would provide for a level editor. It supports opengl directly.

Quote:Original post by stonemetal
If you are using Wx what would you use SDL for? Wx already provides everything SDL would provide for a level editor. It supports opengl directly.

Input, for one.

I think there's a way to use it with WxWidgets (I remember seeing a tutorial somewhere), but it was more of hack than anything.