[Scummvm-devel] Re: 16 bit graphics: Thoughts on how to implement it

[J.Brown (Ender/Amigo)]

> In fact, why implement our own GUI at all? Why not just use host
> widgetry? Admittedly, this wouldn't work on systems without a widget
> set, such as the Dreamcast, but they could easily do their own thing.

Several people keep telling me to do this, and I keep try to explain how
fundementaly impossible this is to do while maintaining three things which
I consider ScummVMs most important aspects:

 - Code Readability: It's bad enough as it is, why make it worse?
 - Platform portabiity: Oh come on, using native widget sets is insane. We
rely on being able to run on almost every platform using SDL. Sure, some
small things are platform specific, like midi - and some platforms DO have
a native backend - but most of those platforms with a native backend don't
PROVIDE widget sets!
 - Code maintainability - Again, this is already a problem. But adding
even MORE port specific API interfaces (sure, we can wrap it into a OGui
class, but the actual practicality between widget conversions is..
horrifying).
 - We need to overlay and interact widgets on a fixed video memory buffer.
I know of very few operating systems that provide this functionaity in a
stable and easily exposed way.


Anyway, I do not see any way this can be done. And to be frank, I don't
WANT it to be done. Besides the above technicalities, I want a consistant
user interface for those of us who frequently move between platforms.

 - Ender