Grail

GrailGUI is a prototype of a replacement for web programming (HTTP, HTML, CSS, JavaScript) and GUI programming. It includes a client graphical API, a browser implemented in C++ and OpenGL, a protocol to transmit metadata and data in binary, a language (XDL) to describe the binary data, and local storage to retain data on the client should that be necessary. Encrypted communications (equivalent of TLS) have not yet been implemented.

For more info see our writeup from Summer 2021.

How to build Grail on Linux and Windows
Frequent Issues

How to build Grail on Linux and Windows

This document describes how to build Grail on a number of different platforms. Grail requires a number of cutting edge tools, so the default ones may have to be replaced. Specifically, we need:

gcc-10, or another compiler that supports C++17 fully and has most features of C++20. We use C++20 language features such as the numbers header and concepts for templates, as well as C++17 variadic templates.
CMake version 3.16 or later.

Libraries

GLFW to manage windows
freetype to read fonts
mpv for audio and video

Other Utilities

We use clang-format to enforce formatting specifications, which are in the .clang-format file. In the future we will have an automated system that formats all code submitted to these specs, but in the meantime please format your code accordingly.
VS Code uses clang-format by default when working with C++, so it's a good place to start off if you're looking for an editor. We also often use it to edit collaboratively as well.
Doom Emacs is another popular choice for an editor, and is well documented for getting up and running editing C++.

If you'd like to begin working on Grail, the easiest way to do so would be to install a copy of Ubuntu 20.04 LTS or newer, or MSYS2 if you are using Windows. It is possible to make Linux distributions with older package versions work, but it will require additional setup, and some parts of Grail may not work (mainly audio and video).

Getting Set Up - Windows

MSYS2

Install MSYS2
Run MSYS2: MSYS2 MinGW 64-bit from the Windows Start Menu.
- Make sure you are running the correct executable or else you will have trouble with the C++ compiler not recognizing your system correctly.

Install dependencies

pacman -S git nano make mingw64/mingw-w64-x86_64-gcc mingw-w64-x86_64-gdb mingw-w64-x86_64-gcc mingw-w64-x86_64-toolchain mingw-w64-x86_64-cmake mingw-w64-x86_64-ninja mingw-w64-x86_64-zlib mingw-w64-x86_64-freetype mingw-w64-x86_64-glfw mingw-w64-x86_64-mpv mingw-w64-x86_64-youtube-dl bison flex mingw-w64-x86_64-xz

Edit ~/.bashrc to include export GRAIL=/path/to/GRAIL and export PATH=$PATH:$GRAIL/bin on the following line. source ~/.bashrc the first time.

If the MSYS2 method does not work, or there are issues, try the method below.

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2)

Follow this guide to install WSL.
In Windows Powershell, type the following command to install Ubuntu 20.04 as the default WSL distribution.
```
wsl --install -d Ubuntu-20.04
wsl --set-version Ubuntu-20.04 2
```
- Note: If you have an error about version mismatch, use command wsl -l to show what the name of the Ubuntu LTS is.
Download the x server here. To finish the install click Next -> Next -> Finish.
Once installation is complete, create a desktop shortcut for the server and in the Properties, target field type in "C:\Program Files\VcXsrv\vcxsrv.exe" :0 -ac -terminate -lesspointer -multiwindow -clipboard -dpi auto and apply the changes.
Install dependencies by referring to the Ubuntu 20.04 setup.
Edit the ~/.bashrc file the same as the step above.

Getting Set Up - Ubuntu

Ubuntu 18.04

Install gcc-11 and g++-11

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-toolchain-r/test
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install gcc-11 g++-11

Preferred, but optional

Set gcc-11 and g++-11 as default compiler

sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/gcc gcc /usr/bin/gcc-11 11
sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/g++ g++ /usr/bin/g++-11 11

Confirm that the default versions of gcc and g++ are correct

sudo update-alternatives --config gcc
sudo update-alternatives --config g++

If the default version of CMake is installed, purge it from apt
```
sudo apt purge --auto-remove cmake
```

Install the latest version of CMake

wget -O - https://apt.kitware.com/keys/kitware-archive-latest.asc 2>/dev/null | gpg --dearmor - | sudo tee /usr/share/keyrings/kitware-archive-keyring.gpg >/dev/null
echo 'deb [signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/kitware-archive-keyring.gpg] https://apt.kitware.com/ubuntu/ bionic main' | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/kitware.list >/dev/null
sudo rm /etc/apt/trusted.gpg.d/kitware.gpg
sudo apt update
sudo apt install kitware-archive-keyring
sudo apt update
sudo apt install cmake

Install other dependencies

sudo apt install ninja-build libglfw3-dev libfreetype6-dev mpv libmpv-dev liblzma-dev flex bison pkg-config

Refer to step 4 of MSYS2 to set up the environment variables.

Ubuntu 20.04

Install gcc-10 and g++-10

sudo apt-get install gcc-10 g++-10

Preferred, but optional

Set gcc-10 and g++-10 as default compiler

sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/gcc gcc /usr/bin/gcc-10 10
sudo update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/g++ g++ /usr/bin/g++-10 10

Confirm that the default versions of gcc and g++ are correct

sudo update-alternatives --config gcc
sudo update-alternatives --config g++

Install dependencies

sudo apt install make cmake ninja-build libglfw3-dev libfreetype-dev mpv libmpv-dev liblzma-dev flex bison pkg-config

Refer to step 4 of MSYS2 to set up the environment variables.

Getting Set Up - Arch-Based Linux

Install dependencies
```
sudo pacman -S glfw-x11 freetype2 base-devel cmake ninja mpv youtube-dl
```
- If you are using Wayland, then install glfw-wayland instead of glfw-x11. Wayland support is currently unconfirmed.
Refer to step 4 of MSYS2 to set up the environment variables.

Compiling

To compile one test with default settings, run ./build.sh <testname>
- To compile all tests with default settings, run ./build.sh
For those who want to modify the default configuration and compile themselves, we use the following:
```
cmake -S . -Bbuild -GNinja
cmake --build build
```
For versions of Ubuntu with custom versions of gcc, but did not set the default compiler with update-alternatives:
```
CC=gcc-11 CXX=g++-11 cmake -S . -Bbuild -GNinja
cmake --build build
```

For building performance-tuned with optimization with debug:

cmake -Bbuild -GNinja -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=relwithdebinfo
cmake --build build

For building performance-tuned with optimization without debugging information:

cmake -Bbuild -GNinja -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=release
cmake --build build

Running

Update test/CMakeLists.txt to compile the file you want to compile and link it to grail.
cd test && testWidgets
- Cursors and other features might not work for other tests as they are not 100% Linux/Windows compatible yet.

Frequent Issues

Need to create an SSH key to push into the repository

GitHub has a great guide on how to do this! This guide will show you how to load ssh-agent when your terminal starts and add a new SSH key to ssh-agent and GitHub

Cloned the repository using HTTPS, but now have to push to the repository

In this instance, you'll need to change the remote url that git is pointing to. This can be done with a single git command that changes which website the remote called origin is pointing at. Once you run this, try to push again and you should be good to go!

Git command:

git remote set-url origin git@github.com:StevensDeptECE/GrailGUI.git

Runtime Error: `Failed to open GLFW window`

This error is most commonly seen when attempting to run Grail on a Windows virtual machine. If your use-case is different, please open an issue with the details of your environment. As far as the project team is aware, this error can be traced to a lack of OpenGL compatibility on Windows virtual machines. This means that the issues is a driver problem that cannot be resolved until there is better OpenGL support in virtual video drivers. If you need a virtual machine, but do not need Windows, a virtual machine running Ubuntu Linux should work. Otherwise, until there is sufficient OpenGL support for virtual Windows, you will have to resort to a dual boot or alternative computer to run Grail and Grail-based programs.

git: 'remote-https' is not found or can't run program

This error could be a antivirus software quarantining your files. Avast is a common software that will prevent your PC from running the program properly. To fix this, go into the antivirus software and add an exception to the git-remote-https.exe file so that your computer can access it.

Everything Else

If you have an issue not on this list, and feel it should be included in the list of frequent issues, open an issue and let us know!

durcor/GrailGUI

Grail

Table of Contents

How to build Grail on Linux and Windows

Getting Set Up - Windows

MSYS2

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2)

Getting Set Up - Ubuntu

Ubuntu 18.04

Ubuntu 20.04

Getting Set Up - Arch-Based Linux

Compiling

Running

Frequent Issues

Need to create an SSH key to push into the repository

Cloned the repository using HTTPS, but now have to push to the repository

Runtime Error: `Failed to open GLFW window`

git: 'remote-https' is not found or can't run program

Everything Else

durcor/GrailGUI

Grail

Table of Contents

How to build Grail on Linux and Windows

Getting Set Up - Windows

MSYS2

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL2)

Getting Set Up - Ubuntu

Ubuntu 18.04

Ubuntu 20.04

Getting Set Up - Arch-Based Linux

Compiling

Running

Frequent Issues

Need to create an SSH key to push into the repository

Cloned the repository using HTTPS, but now have to push to the repository

Runtime Error: Failed to open GLFW window

git: 'remote-https' is not found or can't run program

Everything Else

Runtime Error: `Failed to open GLFW window`