Its lighter use of templates could make it easier to debug C++ applications Credit: LightField Studios / Getty Images CIDLib, a general-purpose C++ development environment, is now open source. Note that it does use some third-party code, including a version of the Scintilla engine as the CML language source editor and parts of the standard JPEG libraries to provide JPEG file format support. CDLib is not based on standard C++/STL libraries but has a far lighter use of templates than what has been commonplace, making it more debuggable, developer Dean Roddey said. The environment, which Roddey compares to the Qt environment, has a mature code base and has been around for years. CDLIb has served as a foundation for the Charmed Quark Controller (CQC), a proprietary home automation platform. CDLib contains about 1,100 classes and has the following functionality: Build tools, a project definition system, a resource compiler, and a loadable text system. A virtual kernel platform portability layer. Standard libraries including streams, memory buffers, strings, threads, and serial ports. Implementations of standards such as WebSockets, HTTP, XML, and JSON. An object request broker. An embeddable, virtual machine-based language called CML and an IDE for CML editing and debugging. A file packaging system. A test framework. Currently, CDLib is available only for Windows. The tool is based on a virtual kernel that abstracts from the OS, and a goal is to make it portable for other plaforms in the future. A Linux implementation was developed years ago but would need to be updated to be used today. Other plans under consideration include 3D graphics support, more internet telephony, and a custom public cryptography system. Where to download load CIDLib You can download CDLib from GitHub. C++Software Development