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Asked: 2026-05-28T06:16:24+00:00

I want to develop a simple windows manager, but do not know which library

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I want to develop a simple windows manager, but do not know which library to use. Requirements:

Take advantage of the existing high-level libraries to deal with fonts, images. Like GTK+, Clutter, GDK. But keep the design-relevance things out, which libraries should I use? Because I tried to use XCB, which is really painful. And I’ve heard about Wayland, and if I write it in XCB, it wouldn’t be portable to Wayland.

I’ve read some posts on WM development, typically use XCB and Xlib, I think they are too low-level and I don’t want to repeat others work. I want a more user-friendly WM, but keep simple and flexible.

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  1. Editorial Team

    The biggest issue is not the library to use. It is the complexity of the requirements, as dictated by ICCCM and EWMH.

    A standard compliant window manager is quite complex, because the standards defining it are complex, and because the X11 protocol is complex.

    You might fork an existing WM instead.

    But any library capable of X11 protocol exchange can fit the bill.

    and I am not sure that Wayland has window managers

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