Dear ImGui

Dear ImGui

Dear ImGui is an open source immediate mode graphical user interface library for C++. It is easy to use and integrate into games or applications to create fast graphical user interfaces with minimal code.
Dear ImGui image
c gui immediate-mode-gui

Dear ImGui: Immediate Mode GUI Library for C++

An open source library for creating fast and easy-to-use graphical user interfaces in games or applications, written in C++.

What is Dear ImGui?

Dear ImGui is an immediate mode graphical user interface library for C++. It is designed to be easy to use and integrate into games or applications to create fast graphical user interfaces requiring minimal code. Some key features of Dear ImGui include:

  • Minimal dependencies - Uses only a single header file and requires OpenGL or DirectX for rendering
  • Immediate mode - UIs are built command-by-command instead of using pre-compiled resources, allowing for flexibility and interactivity
  • Portable - Supports a variety of platforms including Windows, Linux, macOS
  • Extensible and customizable - Can be extended through code and themes/skins
  • Good documentation and examples - Well documented APIs and gallery showcasing capabilities and code snippets

Dear ImGui is commonly used by game developers to quickly create debug UIs, tools UIs, or in-game UIs such as settings menus and HUDs. It emphasizes simplicity and performance over fancy GUI features, making it fast and easy to integrate. The immediate mode approach allows creating UIs that can change dynamically at runtime.

Dear ImGui Features

Features

  1. Immediate mode GUI
  2. Minimal code required
  3. Integration with OpenGL, DirectX, Vulkan, Metal
  4. Widgets like buttons, checkboxes, sliders, trees
  5. Multi-viewport support
  6. Mouse/keyboard/gamepad inputs
  7. Font support
  8. Customizable look and feel

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Lightweight and fast

Easy to integrate and use

Good documentation and examples

Active development and community support

Permissive MIT license

Cons

Limited widget set compared to traditional GUI frameworks

Requires rendering knowledge for integration

Not as full-featured as traditional GUI frameworks


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