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Clean up README.md a little #240

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Sep 14, 2024
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Clean up README.md a little #240

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18 changes: 11 additions & 7 deletions README.md
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Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
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Overview
==
As the popularity of the library [minifb](https://crates.io/crates/minifb) shows, it is useful to put a 2D buffer/image
on a window in a platform-independent way. Minifb's approach to doing window management itself, however, is problematic

Enables software rendering via drawing an image straight to a window.

Softbuffer integrates with the [`raw-window-handle`](https://crates.io/crates/raw-window-handle) crate
to allow writing pixels to a window in a cross-platform way while using the very high quality dedicated window management
libraries that are available in the Rust ecosystem.

Alternatives
==

[minifb](https://crates.io/crates/minifb) also allows putting a 2D buffer/image on a window in a platform-independent way. Minifb's approach to doing window management itself, however, is problematic
code duplication. We already have very high quality libraries for this in the Rust ecosystem
(such as [winit](https://crates.io/crates/winit)), and minifb's implementation of window management is not ideal. For
example, it occasionally segfaults on some platforms and is missing key features such as the ability to set a window
icon. While it would be possible to add these features to minifb, it makes more sense to instead use the standard
window handling systems.

Softbuffer integrates with the [raw-window-handle](https://crates.io/crates/raw-window-handle) crate
to allow writing to a window in a cross-platform way while using the very high quality dedicated window management
libraries that are available in the Rust ecosystem.

What about [pixels](https://crates.io/crates/pixels)? Pixels accomplishes a very similar goal to Softbuffer,
however there are two key differences. Pixels provides some capacity for GPU-accelerated post-processing of what is
displayed, while Softbuffer does not. Due to not having this post-processing, Softbuffer does not rely on the GPU or
hardware accelerated graphics stack in any way, and is thus more portable to installations that do not have access to
hardware acceleration (e.g. VMs, older computers, computers with misconfigured drivers). Softbuffer should be used over
pixels when its GPU-accelerated post-processing effects are not needed.


License & Credits
==

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