pixels/README.md
Jay Oster e08c91bfd2
Update to wgpu 0.10 (#187)
- It would be nice to return an error from the render function
- imgui-winit is still a WIP (open PR: https://github.com/Yatekii/imgui-wgpu-rs/pull/66)
- Update README

Co-authored-by: Mohammed Alyousef <mohammed.alyousef@neurosrg.com>
2021-09-01 14:50:43 -07:00

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![Pixels Logo](img/pixels.png)
A tiny hardware-accelerated pixel frame buffer. :crab:
## But why?
Rapidly prototype a simple 2D game, pixel-based animations, software renderers, or an emulator for your favorite platform. Then add shaders to simulate a CRT or just to spice it up with some nice VFX.
`pixels` is more than just a library to push pixels to a screen, but less than a full framework. You're in charge of managing a window environment, event loop, and input handling.
## MSRV Policy
The Minimum Supported Rust Version for `pixels` will always be made available in the [MSRV.md](./MSRV.md) file on GitHub.
## Features
- Built on modern graphics APIs powered by [`wgpu`](https://crates.io/crates/wgpu): Vulkan, Metal, DirectX 12, OpenGL ES3.
- DirectX 11, WebGL2, and WebGPU support are a work in progress.
- Use your own custom shaders for special effects.
- Hardware accelerated scaling on perfect pixel boundaries.
- Supports non-square pixel aspect ratios. (WIP)
## Examples
- [Conway's Game of Life](./examples/conway)
- [Custom Shader](./examples/custom-shader)
- [Dear ImGui example with `winit`](./examples/imgui-winit)
- [Egui example with `winit`](./examples/egui-winit)
- [Minimal example with SDL2](./examples/minimal-sdl2)
- [Minimal example with `winit`](./examples/minimal-winit)
- [Minimal example with `fltk`](./examples/minimal-fltk)
- [Pixel Invaders](./examples/invaders)
- [`raqote` example](./examples/raqote-winit)
## Troubleshooting
### Cargo resolver
Starting with [`wgpu` 0.10](https://github.com/gfx-rs/wgpu/blob/06316c1bac8b78ac04d762cfb1a886bd1d453b30/CHANGELOG.md#v010-2021-08-18), the [resolver version](https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/resolver.html#resolver-versions) needs to be set in your `Cargo.toml` to avoid build errors:
```toml
resolver = "2"
```
### Driver issues
The most common issue is having an outdated graphics driver installed on the host machine. `pixels`
requests a low power (aka integrated) GPU by default. If the examples are not working for any reason, you may try setting the `PIXELS_HIGH_PERF` environment variable (the value does not matter, e.g. `PIXELS_HIGH_PERF=1` is fine) to see if that addresses the issue on your host machine.
You should also try to keep your graphics drivers up-to-date, especially if you have an old Intel integrated GPU. Keep in mind that some drivers and GPUs are EOL and will not be supported.
### Logging
You may want to use the `RUST_LOG` environment variable (see [`env_logger`](https://docs.rs/env_logger) for full documentation) to gain additional insight while troubleshooting the examples. `RUST_LOG=trace` will spew all logs to `stderr` on debug builds:
```
$ RUST_LOG=trace cargo run --package minimal-winit
```
And also on release builds when default features are disabled:
```
$ RUST_LOG=trace cargo run --package minimal-winit --release --no-default-features
```
## Comparison with `minifb`
The [`minifb`](https://crates.io/crates/minifb) crate shares some similarities with `pixels`; it also allows rapid prototyping of 2D games and emulators. But it requires the use of its own window/GUI management, event loop, and input handling. One of the disadvantages with the `minifb` approach is the lack of hardware acceleration (except on macOS, which uses Metal but is not configurable). An advantage is that it relies on fewer dependencies.