1. Graphic Libraries for The User Interface
KwangWoo Choi
Department of Physics
Kangwon National University
 Graphic Libraries
Motif: The base graphical user interface toolkit for the Common Desktop
Environment (CDE). CDE is a traditional window manager
in X Window system.
GTK+: Most powerful and popular multi-platform graphic toolkit for creating
graphical user interfaces.

2. Introduction to Motif
Motif is also the base graphical user interface toolkit for the Common Desktop
Environment (CDE). CDE is a standard graphical desktop and desktop tool set
for all platforms that support the X Window System.
• Merit: Graphic Library written by ANSI C.
Support high portability with the existing numerical package.
• Weak point: Old-style graphic library. Commercial package.
• LessTif: Free graphic library
corresponding to Motif.
Typical applications in Motif

3. Introduction to GTK+
• GTK+ is a multi-platform toolkit for creating graphical user interfaces.
GTK+ is free software and part of the GNU Project.
• Merit: Recently, most powerful and popular graphic library.
• Weak point: GTK is essentially an object oriented API.
Low portability with the existing numerical package.
Typical applications in GTK+

4. Summary
• Motif is a old-style graphic library, but supports high portability
with the existing numerical package.
• GTK+ is most powerful and popular graphic library, but written
in the concept of the object-oriented API. It supports low
portability with the existing package.
• Develop the user interface in both graphic library, and select the
suitable graphic library for the development of the numerical
computation package.