"Hello, World" GUI Application with Brisk¶

This tutorial will guide you through creating a basic "Hello, World" application using the Brisk framework.

Prerequisites¶

A functioning C++20 compiler
Brisk library binary package and its dependencies (either downloaded or built)

Refer to the Getting Started tutorial for detailed instructions.

Step 1: Create the Project Files¶

The "Hello, World" project will consist of three main files:

CMakeLists.txt – Project setup
main.cpp – Application code
icon.png – Brisk icon (must be in PNG format, with a minimum size of 512x512). Download an example icon from https://github.com/brisklib/brisk-helloworld/raw/main/icon.png.

CMakeLists.txt¶

Create a CMakeLists.txt file in your project directory with the following contents:

CMakeLists.txt

# Minimum supported CMake version is 3.22
cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.22)

project(HelloWorldApp)

# Locate Brisk libraries and headers
find_package(Brisk CONFIG REQUIRED)

# Define application metadata
brisk_metadata(
    VENDOR "Brisk"                     # Vendor or company name
    NAME "HelloWorldApp"               # Application name
    DESCRIPTION "Brisk Hello World"    # Short application description
    VERSION "0.1.0"                    # Version number
    COPYRIGHT "© 2025 Brisk"           # Copyright information
    ICON ${CMAKE_SOURCE_DIR}/icon.png  # Path to the icon (PNG)
    APPLE_BUNDLE_ID com.brisklib.helloworld # Apple bundle identifier
)

# Create an executable target 'main' from main.cpp
add_executable(main main.cpp)

# Link necessary Brisk libraries to 'main'
target_link_libraries(main PRIVATE Brisk::Widgets Brisk::Executable)

# Set up the executable 'main' with Brisk icons, metadata, and startup/shutdown code
brisk_setup_executable(main)

main.cpp¶

Create a main.cpp file in the same directory with the following code:

main.cpp

#include <brisk/gui/Component.hpp>
#include <brisk/gui/GuiApplication.hpp>
#include <brisk/widgets/Graphene.hpp>
#include <brisk/widgets/Button.hpp>
#include <brisk/widgets/Layouts.hpp>
#include <brisk/widgets/Text.hpp>

using namespace Brisk;

// Root component of the application, inherits from Brisk's Component class
class RootComponent : public Component {
public:
    // Builds the UI layout for the component
    Rc<Widget> build() final {
        return rcnew VLayout{
            stylesheet = Graphene::stylesheet(), // Apply the default stylesheet
            Graphene::darkColors(),              // Use dark color scheme
            gapRow = 8_px,                       // Set vertical gap between elements
            alignItems = AlignItems::Center,     // Align child widgets to the center
            justifyContent = Justify::Center,    // Center the layout in the parent
            rcnew Text{"Hello, world"},          // Display a text widget with "Hello, world"
            rcnew Button{
                rcnew Text{"Quit"},              // Button label
                onClick = lifetime() | []() {    // Quit the application on button click
                    windowApplication->quit();
                },
            },
        };
    }
};

// Entry point of the Brisk application
int briskMain() {
    GuiApplication application; // Create the GUI application
    return application.run(createComponent<RootComponent>()); // Run with RootComponent as main component
}

icon.png¶

Place an icon named icon.png in your project directory. You can download an example from the Brisk repository.

Step 2: Build the Application¶

With all files in place, you can now build the project.

macOSLinuxWindows

Generating Xcode projectBuilding using Ninja

mkdir build
cmake -GXcode -S . -B build \
    -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=<path-to-brisk>/lib/cmake \
    -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=<path-to-vcpkg>/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake \
    -DVCPKG_INSTALLED_DIR=<path-to-installed> \
    -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=uni-osx \
    -DVCPKG_HOST_TRIPLET=uni-osx

The project files will be placed in the build directory and can be opened in Xcode.

mkdir build
cmake -GNinja -S . -B build \
    -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=<path-to-brisk>/lib/cmake \
    -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=<path-to-vcpkg>/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake \
    -DVCPKG_INSTALLED_DIR=<path-to-installed> \
    -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=uni-osx \
    -DVCPKG_HOST_TRIPLET=uni-osx
cmake --build build

Building using Ninja

mkdir build
cmake -GNinja -S . -B build \
    -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=<path-to-brisk>/lib/cmake \
    -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=<path-to-vcpkg>/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake \
    -DVCPKG_INSTALLED_DIR=<path-to-installed> \
    -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=x64-linux \
    -DVCPKG_HOST_TRIPLET=x64-linux
cmake --build build

Generating Visual Studio projectBuilding using Ninja

Use PowerShell to execute the commands below.

mkdir build
cmake -G"Visual Studio 17 2022"  -S . -B build `
    -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=<path-to-brisk>\lib\cmake `
    -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=<path-to-vcpkg>\scripts\buildsystems\vcpkg.cmake `
    -DVCPKG_INSTALLED_DIR=<path-to-installed> `
    -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=x64-windows-static-md `
    -DVCPKG_HOST_TRIPLET=x64-windows-static-md

The project files will be placed in the build directory and can be opened in Visual Studio.

Use the Visual Studio Developer Command Prompt (PowerShell) to execute the commands below.

mkdir build
cmake -GNinja -S . -B build `
    -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=<path-to-brisk>/lib/cmake `
    -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=<path-to-vcpkg>/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake `
    -DVCPKG_INSTALLED_DIR=<path-to-installed> `
    -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=x64-windows-static-md `
    -DVCPKG_HOST_TRIPLET=x64-windows-static-md
cmake --build build

Path Substitution¶

Depending on how you set up Brisk and its dependencies, replace the following placeholder paths accordingly:

Using Prebuilt Dependencies & Brisk Binaries¶

Replace path-to-brisk with the directory where the Brisk-Prebuilt-...tar.xz archive was extracted.
Replace path-to-vcpkg with the directory containing Vcpkg. If Vcpkg is not installed globally, use the directory where Brisk-Dependencies-...tar.xz was extracted.
path-to-installed should point to the installed subdirectory inside the extracted Brisk-Dependencies-...tar.xz directory.

Using Prebuilt Dependencies but Building Brisk from Source¶

Replace path-to-brisk with the CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX path you used (usually the dist subdirectory in the Brisk repository).
Replace path-to-vcpkg with the Vcpkg directory. If not installed globally, use the vcpkg_exported directory inside the Brisk repository.
path-to-installed should point to the vcpkg_installed directory within the Brisk repository.

Building Brisk and Dependencies from Source¶

Replace path-to-brisk with the CMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX path (usually the dist subdirectory in the Brisk repository).
Replace path-to-vcpkg with the Vcpkg directory. If Vcpkg is not installed globally, Brisk should have downloaded and installed a local copy in the repository during the first build.
path-to-installed should point to the vcpkg_installed directory within the Brisk repository.

After a successful build, the main executable should be available in the build directory.

Step 3: Run the Application¶

Execute the main file to run the application. You should see a window displaying "Hello, World" text with a "Quit" button that closes the application when clicked.

Congratulations! You've built your first "Hello, World" application with Brisk.