Sdl vs sdl2. It's just outdated at this point.

Sdl vs sdl2. Sep 28, 2018 · More precisely, it uses SDL-Timer, SDL-Audio, SDL-Video and SDL-Events (Screen-, Mouse- and KeyEvents). The 3D and shader API seems better in Allegro and when posting on the forums I always get a resp SDL2 is very, very low level. 04 via: sudo apt-get install libsdl2-dev I used the header: #include <SDL2/SDL. It is used by video playback software, emulators, and popular games including Valve 's award winning catalog and many Humble Bundle games. g. They are slightly different in organization as well. This time we will be coding with SDL 2 which has been released on the SDL website. 26的安装包，为在github上下载速度慢的小伙伴提供便捷 Oct 29, 2024 · Hi everyone! I’m currently working on my master’s thesis, where I’m comparing the SFML, Raylib, and SDL2 libraries in the context of game development. Sep 17, 2022 · Open the zip archive and there should be a folder called SDL2-2. Get insights on both tech, to make an informed choice. It's only little part of SDL functionality. You can copy this library over the existing SDL2 build, or force it to take priority over a system copy with LD_LIBRARY_PATH, etc. Maybe it's different with SDL2, maybe it was my fault, but what I remember from that time is only problems. Sep 1, 2020 · SDL is the name of the library but we don’t want the older SDL1 instead we want SDL2 which seems more or less permanently at version 2. Mar 24, 2021 · If you use Windows, the differences between them are more obvious since Windows SDL1 version uses Windows menu whereas Windows SDL2 version uses SDL-drawn menu. The main difference (as I can see) between the old SDL and SDL2 is that old SDL had window represented by it's surface, all pictures were surfaces and all image operations Feb 5, 2023 · In this case it must be because there is no SDL2/SDL. Alternatively, the jamb liner for the tilt-wash is white on the inside and white on the outside and will be visible Aug 11, 2021 · C++/SDL2 Visual Studio 2019 Template. I thought Allegro was the best option, but then i read Factorio devlog, they had to The audio subsystem in SDL3 is dramatically different than SDL2. Jan 1, 2016 · Originally when referring to SDL, SDL version 1. This document doesn't try to cover all the awesome new things in SDL2--and there are many--but just the things you need to do to get running right now. The SDL 1. 2. Jul 30, 2023 · How do I link SDL2 statically without having to have DDL's? also I've read somewhere online that you have to statically build DDL's into lib libraries? SDL and SFML are both libraries designed to make it easy to build cross-platform multimedia applications. 2 was meant. - ddhuynh/SDL2-Windows-Setup GLFW and SDL offer a platform independent interface to windowing and user event handling, SDL with more functionality than GLFW. However, then your code is "less" portable to Windows (or at least Windows using the GDI Hi, When it's configured for arcade, there are couple of options for video driver. OpenGL is a platform-independent API for graphics. Simple DirectMedia Layer is a cross-platform development library designed to provide low level access to audio, keyboard, mouse, joystick, and graphics hardware via OpenGL and Direct3D. SDL2 is over here! Try it right now! SDL3 has officially released and is ready for you to start using now. it just really bothers me that I can't use compute shaders on MacOS (deprecated support at 4. Using the SDL documentation Wiki Introduction An introduction to the features in SDL 2. :wink:&nbsp;Not sure why you started this thread to be honest. Essentially, SDL_Surface is a tool for CPU side blit rendering, where as SDL_Renderer takes advantage of hardware acceleration, and performs the rendering on the GPU. 0 or Allegro 5. more My 1st question is regarding, if you can share, the overall goal of SDL3, what sort of things or problems are being made as goal, that SDL2 didn't or couldn't do, other than just continuing to patch SDL for new systems. the screen) instead of an SDL_Renderer object. 2 previously and you want to use SDL 2. So far this is the case. 11 and has the native DLLs for SDL version 2. Not to mention multi platform support. Simple DirectMedia Layer (SDL) is a C++ compatible library that allows simple, low-level access, to SDL and GTK are quite different in the sense that SDL just tries to provide you with a drawing surface and device inputs. The compatibility layer that was introduced a few years later did solve the "SDL1 apps running under SDL2 under the hood (though with some regressions)" compatibility issue, it did somewhat solve the "compile existing code that uses SDL1 with SDL2" (depending on your language and SDL bindings, i had to compile the real SDL 1. How much usage do the actual rendering portions of the library have? From what I've seen (and what I'm doing, personally), most folks are just using SDL2 as a "bootstrap" for a regular graphics API, be it D3D, OpenGL, Vulkan, and/or Metal, etc. SDL2 is the latest major version of the library. SDL is really good as a cross-platform window and input library (that also has some audio capabilities), though, so if you find yourself working with OpenGL or Vulkan in the future SDL works well as a backbone of sorts. 2 to 2. 0: sfml vs sdl2 . So SDL2 gets my vote. However , if i choose monogame , it might be a small problem because my uni teaches c++ / c / java / python . 0! Source Code How to download the source code to SDL. The first thing that we need to install is Visual Studio Code editor. E. SDL2 is relatively bare-bones and you need separate libraries (sdl2_image, sdl2_mixer, sdl2_ttf, etc. This will execute the batch file run. In case you need sdl2 AUR or sdl12-compat install them accordingly, though it is advised to migrate to SDL3. What is it? Simple DirectMedia Layer is a cross Dec 22, 2020 · I have novice C++ experience, I have played with SFML before but i hear SDL2 is more cross platform. Contribute to libsdl-org/SDL development by creating an account on GitHub. Moving to SDL3 ? Came back recently to an old SDL2 project only to find out that SDL3 exists now. To simplify, pygame is SDL for python. Do i stick with monogame or with SDL ? my end goal is to create a 2d game , and Using SDL_Audio and SDL_Mixer vs OpenAL I know how to use SDL_Mixer well enough to load and play WAV files, but I'd like to explore the possibility of 3D sound and also achieve some post-processing effects on the sound buffer. An SDL2 compatibility layer that uses SDL3 behind the scenes. they wallpaper over a lot of platform-specific differences). A guide for setting up SDL2 on Windows 11 using MSYS2 and VS Code. May 21, 2023 · 前言 欢迎来到 小K 的 SDL专栏 第一小节，本节为大家介绍一下SDL是什么，能做什么，可以在哪些平台运行以及SDL的安装和VS2022配置SDL、导出模板、 cmake 运行SDL， 同时我也会在资源里为大家上传SDL2. The artist can then blit the entire image to the screen with just a single operation. To link with a library in c++ you have to both tell the linker where to find an already compiled library file (on windows this is either a . Why professional gamedev teams using SDL: cross platform window creation and input handling. Use them if you don't want to do all the window functions like sizing, resolution, user keystrokes, mouse or joystick movements, contexts in case of OpenGL by yourself and platform dependently, which can be very tedious. None. It's a popular cross-platform library for developing applications with graphics, sound, input handling, etc. the estate style we have on other renewal windows and prefer. I used SDL long time ago. If that is a pro or con depends on you. Ive tried a little of both , and found that its easier and faster to get things done in monogame . I made this cheatsheet to fill a void that I felt existed in SDL’s documentation compared to Raylib. The subreddit covers various game development aspects, including programming, design, writing, art, game jams, postmortems, and marketing. Side-by-side analysis of features, pricing, pros and cons to help you choose the best option for your needs. I’d love to hear about your experiences with these libraries. 2, however, on the platforms we cover. i guess, sdl much slower bcs of sdl_ttf library . This will need access to SDL3's headers, CMake and the build tools of your choice. SDL_Textureis created from SDL_Surface which in tu Nov 29, 2002 · Allegro. For these tutorials I'm putting them in a directory I created called C:\vclib 2) Start up Visual Studio and create a new empty C++ SDL 1. It’s used by many game developers, and there GLFW is leaner than SDL2. SDL2/GLFW both can be combined, but you really need to learn opengl and SDL before doing stuff like this. 12. What are the pros and cons between the 2, and which one would be better in terms of learning and easier or more efficient workflow? Thanks (Please don't tell me to make Open this template folder in VSCode, bring up the terminal, type run then press enter. It provides low-level access to the GPU and enables high SDL_gpu can be used to replace the SDL_Render subsystem of SDL2. dll or a . Nowadays, when refering to SDL, it depends on context if you really mean the old SDL 1. Nov 8, 2012 · I have a practical situation whereby you might choose one over the other, as I have recently switched from SDL to SFML for a game I am building. Also game written in it runs decently fast. Nothing else gets even close to the platform compatibility and features of SDL. Jan 29, 2022 · Then hit the Browse tab and search for Sayers. On Linux you can usually do it easily from your distro's package manager. About 7 years ago I chose SDL2 for that exact reason (2gb ram, single core 2ghz cpu with a very slow hard drive). 2 would not be a drop-in replacement for 2. IIRC, VVVVVV uses SDL's renderer. If you used SDL 1. SDL2 also supports gestures raylib rtext module also provides several functions to manage codepoint and UTF-8 text and some general-pourpose string management functions for convenience. I'm not sure, if Updating to SDL2 would really mean a big Advantage for me, because Sfml is nice but I would go with either SDL or raylib since they are compatible with emscripten. I'm trying to learn SDL2. The primary way to play audio is no longer an audio callback; instead you bind SDL_AudioStreams to devices; however, there is still a callback method available if needed. Jan 11, 2019 · Uses Lua as the programming language, which means that it’s good for prototyping and getting stuff done quickly. Once built, you will have a drop-in replacement that can be used with any existing binary that relies on SDL2. Some of these installation instructions happen to work with 1. 2 audio compatibility API has also been removed, as it was a simplified version of the audio callback interface. Installing the tools. I used both before, and while I do prefer GLFW for more general purpose stuff, I would take SDL2 over GLFW for games. 20. is the same for SDL? SDL2 supports more functionality (audio, input, and lots of other stuff) and it has (at least indirect) support from Valve, which is nice. 0. It serves as a hub for game creators to discuss and share their insights, experiences, and expertise in the industry. Below are the quote by @joncampbell123 (note that OpenGL support is working in SDL2 builds since then): At this point there are tradeoffs between the two. Copy the contents of the folder and put it anywhere you'd like. The big difference is that SDL is in C and pygame is wrapper for python, but they work in very similar ways ( I programmed in C and in python). Unless I missed the point. Contribute to vlang/sdl development by creating an account on GitHub. Jul 5, 2024 · Setting up SDL2 for development on Windows with MSYS2 and VS Code - MSYS2_UCRT_SDL2_VSCODE_CONFIG. getting harder to convince myself to start new projects in opengl. A lot of things you're already using in SDL2 are easier, more consistent, and just generally better in SDL3, so the upgrade can be worth it in any case, but here are some things that are new features in SDL3 that you Dec 20, 2018 · What are the real world advantages of either SDL1 or SDL2 builds of DOSBox-X? Is there any reason to prefer one to the other? I know that SDL2 is what will be required in the future, but are there any reasons to prefer it now? The Simple Directmedia Layer WikiSimple DirectMedia Layer 3. GLFW A multi-platform library for OpenGL, OpenGL ES, Vulkan, window and input (by glfw) Just use SDL. Navigate your tech-selection with hard data-backed insights. Hi everyone, I'd want to make a 2D videogame in C++. Beginning Game Programming v2. I'm planning to keep the graphic really simple (a top-down as Pokemon) and focus on game mechanics instead. both demos have almost same engine , except rendering. In this blog we'll introduce what SDL is, when you should consider it as your starting point, and go into the code with a hands on example which you can follow along as we build a C application complete with image loading, text rendering and game controls. lib file), and you have to tell the compiler where to find the location of the libraries header files, for For Simple Direct Media Layer 2 (SDL2), after installing it on Ubuntu 16. Installation How to install SDL on your platform of choice and link your program Nov 25, 2020 · Ive been considering using either SDL or monogame . It hasn't been officially released yet. There availability of existing code, tutorials and information for SDL means its going to have on going development and support and that you can also peek behind SDL2 is fairly simple with a relatively friendly API, but GL is not something that will make much sense until you're a significantly experienced programmer who understands data structures and algorithms, some linear algebra, and has a rough idea of how the computer works. I know a bit of c++ and c# , and like both equally . However, I wonder which version of SDL is better for this task: my project is graphically simple and there is probably more resources on SDL1 out there. Second, Andersen is recommending the Woodwright for our 3 double hungs, as the exterior sash in fibrex will more closely match the renewals we have. You can use OpenGL with both if you want 3D. 0); “updating the screen”: telling the SDL that we have finished drawing what we wanted, and that it can now display the contents of the screen; Official SDL2 & SDL3 bindings for V. Compute shaders is a complicated beast and you'll need to be very familiar with OpenGL before you'll be able to understand what you're doing with them. SDL2 apps can also use sdl2-compat. Mar 11, 2025 · Whether you're a novice C++ programmer or a veteran software developer, graphics programming is an educational and rewarding experience. It can be installed on legacy platforms that SDL2 doesn't support, such as Mac OS 9 or Windows 95, but settling for 1. This is just a basic setup to test everything works and compiles correctly. Software developers can use it to write high-performance computer games and other multimedia applications that can run on many operating systems such as AmigaOS, Android, iOS, Linux, MorphOS, macOS, and Windows. 0, both for the new features and the better experience over SDL 1. And the reason I liked SDL more was because it was more"lower-level" than Raylib or SFML. Then I moved to libGDX and Java. something. I’ve left the Visual Studio version off as the process is mostly the same whether it’s Visual Studio 2017, 2019 or future versions. SDL You may think now you're aiming to write games/software for Windows however if something is successful the process of making it run on Linux, mac or android is alot easier with SDL than using the Windows libraries. Which one is better? Well, SDL2 has been around for longer and is much more well tested and it's easier to find information about it. Much like they already have sdl12-compat, which allows you to use SDL 2 if you're stuck on SDL 1, they've also released sdl2-compat for people stuck on SDL 2 to get the benefits of SDL 3. h :No such file or directory. md I want to make a 2d game entirely in code without using an engine, but i can't decide whether to attempt it in SDL2 or OpenGL. e. Sep 28, 2020 · So one of the first things that I did was try to set up my dev environment and test some SDL2 code. The old version hasn't seen a bugfix or update in almost 3 years ago, it has less features, supports fewer devices and OSes, and it isn't maintained for security patches. However, Woodwright locks us into a historic sash lock in white vs. Imho setup using GLFW is easier, but SDL2 brings a lot of neat features other than input and window management that GLFW is missing (e. Includes a Migration Guide from 1. Feb 22, 2024 · Explore a riveting comparison between Raylib and SDL. SDL is a platform-independent API for everything else relevant to the game development, and also provides an initialization procedure for OpenGL (which OpenGL itself does not provide, so you needed to use platform-specific APIs like WGL and AGL or later standards like EGL). I had memory leaks all the time. If you only want input and use raw opengl calls, glfw is the smallest option of the 3 (it also handles window/context creation for you if you want to). SDL officially supports Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android The Simple Directmedia Layer WikiNew Features in SDL3 If you've got an SDL2 app, you might be wondering if you should move to SDL3, or maybe just drop sdl2-compat into the mix. It is the predecessor of SDL2 and modern SDL3. The game is a tile-based RTS, and I had developed it to the point where I had a fully functioning scrollable map + minimap + menu system. At runtime, sdl2-compat needs to be able to find a This wiki is your portal to documentation and other resources for SDL 2. And this will (currently) work correctly, but it prints this to stderr: Oct 15, 2012 · I am looking at porting my game to use either SDL 2. 0, please note there are some API changes and some of your code will need to be adapted. Quickstart a new SDL2 project ! - fredyrogez/sdl-cpp-vs-template Install the sdl3 package. 2 isn't covered here. SDL Simple DirectMedia Layer (by libsdl-org) How does relative mode work differently in SDL2 vs. I'd like to avoid wasting time to solve compatibility issues among different hardware and platforms. Don't worry though, it doesn't take all that long. Compare SDL3 and SDL2 to explore their key differences, new features, and learn why upgrading to SDL3 offers improved performance, modularity, and modern APIs. Sep 24, 2020 · Apparently, SDL2 fits better with any OS accross compliance, as the UI is not tied to the system (if I'm not wrong, MAME is moved on SDL also for this reason) 2. SDL's 32 bit pixel formats with per pixel alpha are not supported directly by cairo because cairo and SDL disagree on the interpretation of pixel values with alpha: SDL uses unpremultiplied pixels but cairo uses premultiplied pixels. Sep 29, 2014 · There's no meaningful benefit to SDL 1 over SDL 2. 3k次，点赞6次，收藏18次。该文章详细介绍了如何在VisualStudio2022中下载并配置SDL库，包括设置包含目录和库目录，创建空项目，初始化SDL，创建并显示窗口。通过示例代码展示了如何初始化SDL，创建窗口，填充窗口颜色并更新显示，以及处理窗口关闭事件。 May 28, 2025 · Hello! I made this document for anyone trying to setup an enviroment for SDL2 on Windows using VS Code for building and debugging. I enjoy it because I can write both C or C++ code with it, and not feel like my code base is an entire mess. I am also asking the opposite question on the SDL forums. Sep 4, 2024 · SDL（Simple DirectMedia Layer）是一个跨平台的多媒体开发库，用于游戏和多媒体应用程序的开发。 而SDL2是SDL的第二个主要版本，它在SDL的基础上进行了一些改进和扩展。 以下是SDL和SDL2之间的一些区别： 支持平台：SDL可以在多个平台上运行，包括Windows、Linux、Mac OS等。 GLFW VS SDL Compare GLFW vs SDL and see what are their differences. There's a huge amount of new features and overall improvements including (taken from the SDL 3 release post): Sep 8, 2024 · 文章浏览阅读3. Mar 2, 2022 · Simple DirectMedia Layer. Jan 22, 2025 · Plus a new SDL 2 to SDL 3 compatibility layer. And maybe bcs raylib uses opengl for rendering This repository is for Mac users who want to use SDL on Mac with VS Code (both Intel and Apple ARM compatible). They're similar in purpose; provide similar capabilities, and act as platform abstraction layers (i. Compare Vulkan vs SDL. The window management and input handling of SDL2 is fantastic -- it's definitely been invaluable for me in that regard. Apr 16, 2016 · This chapter describes how to use modern OpenGL with Free Pascal via SDL 2. The fact that it's supported by Valve is a bonus, for non-technical reasons of course. Jan 26, 2024 · This practical guide shows a complete setup to configure VSCode for videogame programming with SDL2 and C/C++. Out of all of them, I think SDL2 was closer to what I was looking for, though, Raylib was the one I used the most at the beginning. These include sdl2_image, sdl2_mixer, sdl2_ttf, etc. This narrowed my search down to basically SDL2 (which gets a great write up and has been ported to basically everything) or (following a game engine / open GL series by The Cherno) GLFW along with GLAD (the former for window abstraction and GLAD for actually interfacing with OpenGL). Is this true? My question is in your opinion; Why I would use SFML over SDL2? Thak you in advance . So i was wondering, as of right now, is it "safe" to move to SDL3 ? Is it generally stable, espacially compared to SDL2 ? SFML is much easier and I understand it more, but SDL2 seems more powerful. 16 This is fairly well documented in the SDL1 to SDL2 Migration Guide. 0 This is the SDL3 wiki. If you decide SDL2 allows you to transfer pixels from one surface to another quickly and efficiently. Finally click Install and then OK on the Preview Changes window that pops up next. SDL2 cleans up some conceptual weirdness in SDL1 (what's in texture mem vs. I wish you good luck, but you're in no shape to start combining them. Yeah, it's easy to wrap SDL in classes, but if you really want OOP then you're saving yourself a ton of wrapper code by using SFML. It's 99. SDL2, while not really object oriented, is still very intuitive. SDL2 vs SDL1 for 3D game development using OpenGL in 2020 Hi, For the sake of learning, I would like to create a 3D city builder using C++ and SDL + OpenGL. SDL3, on the other hand, is a work-in-progress. GTK provides you with a user interface toolkit, that is, it provides you with user interface elements such as scrollbars, push buttons and so on. Mar 14, 2023 · calling SDL display functions: with SDL1, calling SDL_BlitSurface() on SDL_Surface; in SDL2, we will rather use SDL_RenderCopy() on SDL_Texture (see the migration guide from 1. Setup guide to install SDL2 on Windows with Visual Studio 2022. SDL might be a good option for you—but it is going to depend on the game and how fast you want it to get done. h . SDL and sfml are bigger packages that have more features available (sound, fonts, texture imports, some rendering abstractions). Follow the instructions below if you still don't have SDL2 properly installed in SDL is a layer above OpenGL; in fact it uses GDI on Windows by default and also has a DirectX backend. I recommend putting it in a folder that you dedicate to holding all your development libraries for Visual C++. low mem?) as well as enabling new OS and platform features (consistent multitouch. My main focus is extreme ease of prototyping — you should be able to have sprites moving around on the screen in 10 minutes. currently I'm an expert at opengl. May 8, 2016 · I'll give my vote and say SDL2. This is adapted from this guide by Adam Richardson, made to work with the UCRT enviroment. I know about SFML but i'd much rather learn OpenGL as that would be more practical for the industry. So they both handle graphics, audio, inputs, networking, and so on. In SDL2, what is the difference between a texture and a surface? What advantages does using a renderer have over "software" rendering? Jul 28, 2025 · A beginners guide for Game Programming. gl sdl2 dispmanx what are the differences and what is the best choice for the performance in playing a game? My experience dispmanx is the worst, but I just want to know a little bit more about what they are. Aug 17, 2022 · SDL library (SDL2 and SDL_Mixer) vs raylib audio module (raudio) Both libraries provide similar functionality, they allow loading and playing static and dynamic (streaming) audio data and manage the audio device. It's very legacy, and lacks support for must-have features like windowed fullscreen, core GL context support, input hotplugging, etc. But it's most used SDL functionality. Setting up SDL2 Download 2 files SDL2. Alternatively, use the general purpose pkg-config. There are also sdl Feb 11, 2024 · Unearth the intricacies of LibGDX and SDL2 in our thorough comparison. These tutorials were designed for C++ programmers who want to move from text based games to real time games with raylib VS SDL2 Compare raylib vs SDL2 and see what are their differences. Extract the zipped file SDL2. When to use SDL_gpu vs OpenGL + SDL2? Hi, I have been writing an ECS-like graphics engine on and off for the past 15 months or so. cc Forums Allegro vs SDLAllegro vs SDL Sep 28, 2020 · 自上篇文章所述在VS C++生成SDL2库文件，编写简单Hello World程序验证库文件。 1、使用Visual Studio 2019 创建一个终端控制台程序。 Jul 20, 2023 · Thankfully SDL, Simple DirectMedia Layer 2. It provides a lot of abstractions to underlying platform differences and is a good layer for building on top of. text rendering or audio). In my experience, static linking works reliably on Windows but poorly on Linux. sdl in vs code Hello guys, so I'm a kind of beginner in programming, I am trying to make a game in c using sdl on vs code, I've added everything and followed a tutorial, but it keeps on telling me: fatal error: SDL/SDL2. People are probably saying you can use OpenGL to get around limitations of SDL on platforms that by default use OpenGL (ahem, Linux) because the higher level abstraction doesn't expose that functionality. just curious for this community's opinion- how realistic is it to switch from opengl to vulkan for making games with sdl2? small scale, puzzle games, custom 2D engine, etc. 99999% boilerplate code anyway and this part is given to SDL. 1). The migration guide lists the feature differences and how to adapt old code to the new SDL 2. ) And, as others have pointed out, it's clearly the future of SDL development. 0 Last Updated: Jul 28th, 2025 Greetings everyone, welcome to the ground up recoding of Beginning Game Programming with SDL. The original SDL (sometimes referred to as SDL1) is no longer actively developed. Custom tools: SDL2 + Low level APIs (OpenGL, Vulkan, Metal, console-specific) SDL2 is a low level library to handle graphics, audio, and input. Apparently, SDL_Mixer does have some 3D sound functionality (Mix_SetPosition). Simple DirectMedia Layer (SDL) is a cross-platform software development library designed to provide a hardware abstraction layer for computer multimedia hardware components. It's really easy to learn and fun to code. SDL3? Jan 25, 2014 · Whats the main difference between using the MonoGame with C# and SDL with C++? Which of them is easier to use? Which is recommended for multi-platform support? Its important for us to have struct Out of all of them, I think SDL2 was closer to what I was looking for, though, Raylib was the one I used the most at the beginning. I started to use The subreddit covers various game development aspects, including programming, design, writing, art, game jams, postmortems, and marketing. zip from the release page. zip and SDL2. ) if you want anything even slightly more advanced. Sep 11, 2021 · SDL VS GLFW Compare SDL vs GLFW and see what are their differences. [9] SDL Simple DirectMedia Layer. Nov 29, 2022 · What will happen is that the app will load SDL2, which will see SDL_DYNAMIC_API and load sdl2-compat, which will load SDL3. Since then I've obtained a better computer and I have a custom engine on my hands but also started using Unity. Don’t forget eval! Can anyone explain to me in simple words what is the difference between texture and surface? I saw it used in SDL2 as SDL_Surface and SDL_Texture. . h file in your include path. Graphics Rendering: OpenGL is a graphics rendering API that allows developers to directly interact with the graphics hardware. for SDL 2. It has a built in renderer that's good enough to make something 2D if you don't need any crazy visual effects or custom lighting. SDL stands for Simple DirectMedia Layer. Like SDL3, SDL2 also is modular though the modules are in separate packages. SDL2 is Simple DirectMedia Layer, it's what you would usually term a "Framework". Avoid SDL 1. Which one have you used or are you using in your work, and what influenced your choice? Out of all of them, I think SDL2 was closer to what I was looking for, though, Raylib was the one I used the most at the beginning. Sep 28, 2014 · I'v converted from SDL1 to SDL2, and found it well worth the effort. Despite what some people say, you're not forced to use OpenGL directly. apt-get install libsdl2-dev on Debian. Mar 22, 2023 · Overview Below is a cheatsheet / quick reference for the SDL 2 API. It's just outdated at this point. What is the difference between an `SDL_Renderer` and an `SDL_Surface` in SDL2? SDL is like SFML, but its API isn't quite as nice. Core. Need some motivation? Here's a list of New Features that you can enjoy today in SDL3! If you're coming from SDL2 check out the 2 to 3 Migration Guide. which one should i choose? first i can't English well, so pls understand that :) i want to know what is main difference between sfml and sdl2 in game dev? and which one has a lot of users and materials in game dev? also if you are limited to 2D RPG game development, which is better choice between sdl2 and sfml? How to install it depends on your system. Mar 14, 2022 · SDL 2 Tutorial Windows and Visual Studio Code Setup | Visual Studio Code, Game Dev Sonar Systems 52K subscribers Subscribe Oct 28, 2020 · There are some ambiguity around this SDL capability to encapsulate the graphics API too, some texts states SDL is meant to be used alongside a specific chosen target (Direct3D or OpenGL) and yet others suggests SDL could completely encapsulate the graphics API. SDL_gpu uses GPU_Target to represent a render target (a render destination, e. This is a simple guide to how to setup SDL2 with Visual Studio Code and mingw64, for me worked and I hope that you can start with SDL2 in Windows. SDL3 will not implicitly initialize My 2 cents. No Fluff, just facts. Any kind of GUI more complex than a basic button is gonna take some definite effort. i looked a little at monogames resources and noticed that there is not much documentation and tutorials. 1 and can&#39;t decide which to use, both seem to have great support for Windows, Mac, Linux, and both somewhat support iOS and Android. raylib A simple and easy-to-use library to enjoy videogames programming (by raysan5) Jul 3, 2024 · I have been learning SDL recently and decided I should make a short tutorial on how to get it up and running in visual studio. The other big difference is that pygame has classes. The current version is 1. zip to your C:\ folder. Jan 8, 2023 · Alternatively, static link by replacing --libs with --static-libs, though this is discouraged by the SDL project. 0, is a really easy way to get started. 2, the successor SDL2 or the modern SDL3. Compiler. and using that to render their SDL is commonly used for bootstrapping a window and things like input handling. This process is known as blitting, and it enables artists to create complete images from pre-drawn graphics. We think you'll be very happy with SDL 2. OpenGL vs SDL: What are the differences? Introduction This article compares and contrasts the key differences between OpenGL and SDL, two popular frameworks used for graphics programming and game development. Frameworks are something in between coding everything yourself and using an existing engine. Sep 13, 2025 · SDL library (SDL2 and SDL_Mixer) vs raylib audio module (raudio) Both libraries provide similar functionality, they allow loading and playing static and dynamic (streaming) audio data and manage the audio device. bat, which will automatically compile/link the code, generate the executable and launch it. If you are in the business of finishing your games then use an engine like unity, unreal, or even godot as the extra tech challenges that accompany SDL are probably not worth it anymore. SDL2. Installation of additional libraries such as SDL Image, SDL Mixer and SDL TTF is also covered by this tutorial. UPDATED FOR C++23 | A step-by-step tutorial on configuring SDL2, SDL_image and SDL_ttf in a Visual Studio C++ project on Windows | Clear explanations and simple code examples 8. So, let's get to it. Aug 28, 2007 · Hi everybody A lot of people wonder how SFML compares to SDL, that's why I wrote a small benchmark to compare a few key features, mainly displaying sprites and text. I can't comment much on SFML as I've never used it, but I've heard it's similar to SDL SDL is written in C itself, so it is quite unlikely that you are gonna run into problems when developing for it using C (although most guides/tutorials about working with SDL2 you will find online will propably assume you're programming in C++). Template. 2 library to have Build the library. It provides you with less out-of-the-box utilities, compared to a framework. When dynamically linked, users can, and do, trivially substitute a different SDL2 binary, such as one patched for their system. It might not matter if you're making a single window game, but once you get off the beaten path and start using multiple windows, need high dpi support, touch screen controls, etc you'll notice everything else is lacking (and often here SDL isn't perfect either and you need to call the native system for a beginner in C# and C++, would you recommend something like Monogame or SDL2. But I can't decide which is the best toolset. The tests consists of counting the number of frames rendered during 5 seconds : 1/ Displaying 2000 static sprites 2/ Displaying 2000 alpha-blended static sprites 3/ Displaying 2000 rotating sprites 4/ Displaying 20 lines of static Aug 21, 2016 · Are there any other considerations &amp; differences that can help one make a decision? &nbsp; &nbsp; Sounds like you already covered every inch of what needs to be known making a choice. 15K subscribers 570 41K views 4 years ago GERMANY #SFML #SDL2 #Game #2020 In this video, we will see which one of SDL and SFML is better for your project. h> and the compiler linker command: -lSDL2main -lSDL2 Additionally, you may also want to install: apt-get install libsdl2-image-dev apt-get install libsdl2-mixer-dev apt-get install libsdl2-ttf-dev With these headers: #include <SDL2/SDL_image. I really want to choose SDL2, because I've seen some cool games in it, but at the same time I want to choose SFML because it's just so much easier to make games. I've tried SFML and without going into any detail why, I don't care for it. SDL also allows for fast blits between different pixel formats. srycltev ulza iobh uzdfngc ofzsfc pbd bdlpack idig xhzdpyk jmbno