What is Qt and why you should use it

Qt framework overview, history and features

The Qt framework was first developed by the Norwegian company Trolltech in 1991. The original purpose of Qt was to provide a toolkit for developing graphical user interfaces (GUIs) for the Unix operating system. Qt was based on the C++ programming language and included a set of libraries and tools for building GUIs.

In 1994, Trolltech released the first version of Qt under a dual licensing model, which allowed developers to use Qt for free under the GNU General Public License (GPL) or to purchase a commercial license for proprietary development. This licensing model helped to make Qt popular among both open-source and commercial developers.

Over the years, Qt continued to evolve and expand its capabilities, with new versions adding support for additional platforms and features. In 2008, Nokia acquired Trolltech, and in 2011, Nokia transferred ownership of Qt to the Qt Project, which is now managed by the Qt Company.

Today, the Qt framework is widely used by developers around the world for creating applications that run on desktop, mobile, and embedded platforms. The framework has expanded beyond its original purpose of GUI development and now includes support for networking, multimedia, and other types of applications. The most recent version of Qt, Qt 6, was released in December 2020 and includes improvements to performance, usability, and security.

The Qt framework is a cross-platform software development framework that allows developers to create graphical user interfaces (GUIs) and other software applications for desktop, mobile, and embedded platforms. Here are five main reasons why you might want to use the Qt framework:

1. Cross-platform support: The Qt framework provides developers with a single codebase that can be used to create applications that run on multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, and more.
2. Powerful GUI design tools: Qt provides a powerful set of tools for designing and creating modern, intuitive graphical user interfaces (GUIs). This includes a drag-and-drop GUI designer, as well as support for creating custom UI elements using Qt’s C++ or QML programming languages.
3. Extensive library of pre-built components: Qt includes an extensive library of pre-built components, such as buttons, dialogs, and menus, that can be used to speed up development time and create polished applications.
4. High-performance graphics and multimedia support: Qt includes powerful graphics and multimedia support, including hardware acceleration and support for 3D graphics and video playback, which makes it well-suited for creating applications that require high-performance graphics and multimedia capabilities.
5. Open-source community: Qt is an open-source framework with a large and active community of developers who contribute to its ongoing development and support. This community provides a wealth of resources, including documentation, tutorials, and forums, to help developers learn and work with the framework.