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71 lines
3.7 KiB
Markdown
71 lines
3.7 KiB
Markdown
# Overview
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The following sections explain how to integrate your `.slint` designs into your
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C++ application. The entry point is the `.slint` file containing the primary
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component you need to instantiate from C++.
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Slint is a very flexible system and allows for different integration options.
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First you can compile your Slint designs ahead of time into C++ code. This
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code is then built into your application. This allows for the smallest
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possible memory footprint and the best possible performance.
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The second approach is to load your Slint designs at run-time, interpreting
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them as needed. This enables even more dynamic user interfaces that can be
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changed at run-time, but comes at the price of having less opportunity to apply
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optimizations.
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Either way, once your user interface is shown, you interact with it from C++,
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for example by setting properties, populating data models or setting up and
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handling callbacks to react to events triggered by the user.
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## Compiled `.slint` Designs
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The provided CMake integration makes it easy to compile your Slint sources:
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The `slint_target_sources` CMake command makes the translation automatic. The
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[generated code](generated_code.md) has an API to set and get property values,
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etc. This API uses types from the {ref}`slint <namespace_slint>` namespace, for
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example {cpp:class}`slint::SharedString` or {cpp:class}`slint::Color`.
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## Run-Time Interpreted `.slint` Designs
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Instead of compiling `.slint` designs to C++, you can dynamically load `.slint`
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files at run-time. This is slower than compiling them ahead of time and requires
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more memory, however it provides more flexibility in your application design.
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The entry point to loading a `.slint` file is the
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{cpp:class}`slint::interpreter::ComponentCompiler` class in the
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{ref}`slint::interpreter <namespace_slint__interpreter>` namespace.
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With the help of {cpp:class}`slint::interpreter::ComponentCompiler` you create
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a {cpp:class}`slint::interpreter::ComponentDefinition`, which provides
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information on properties and callbacks common to all instances. The
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{cpp:func}`slint::interpreter::ComponentDefinition::create()` function creates
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new instances, wrapped in a {cpp:class}`slint::ComponentHandle`. This is a smart
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pointer that owns the actual instance and keeps it alive as long as at least one
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{cpp:class}`slint::ComponentHandle` is in scope, similar to
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`std::shared_ptr<T>`.
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All property values in `.slint` are mapped to
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{cpp:class}`slint::interpreter::Value` in C++. This is a polymorphic data type
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that can hold different kinds of values, such as numbers, strings or even data
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models.
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More complex user interfaces commonly consume data in the form of an abstract
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data model, that is used with <a href="../slint/src/reference/repetitions.html">`for` - `in`</a>
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repetitions or <a href="../slint/src/builtins/widgets.html#listview">`ListView`</a> elements in the
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`.slint` language. All models in C++ with the interpreter API are sub-classes
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of the {cpp:class}`slint::Model` where the template parameter is
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{cpp:class}`slint::interpreter::Value`. To provide your own data model, you can
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subclass `slint::Model<slint::interpreter::Value>`.
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It's possible to declare [singletons that are globally available](../slint/src/globals.html)
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in `.slint` files. You can access them from to your C++ code by exporting them
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and using the getter and setter functions on
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{cpp:class}`slint::interpreter::ComponentInstance` to change properties and
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callbacks:
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1. {cpp:func}`slint::interpreter::ComponentInstance::set_global_property()`
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1. {cpp:func}`slint::interpreter::ComponentInstance::get_global_property()`
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1. {cpp:func}`slint::interpreter::ComponentInstance::set_global_callback()`
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1. {cpp:func}`slint::interpreter::ComponentInstance::invoke_global_callback()`
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