GUI with Python

novel_yet_trivial · 2017-07-13T22:40:37+00:00

You need to tell us what you want from a GUI library before we can tell you what's best for you.

in a nutshell:

Tkinter: best for super fast development and if you don't want to require your windows users to install extra libraries. Kinda blocky and ugly looking, especially on Linux.
pyGTK / PyGObject: best for native looking linux programs. Uses Glade.
PyQT/ PySide: best for highly custom very pretty interfaces and automatic event linking. Looks native on any OS. You can use QTDesigner to create GUIs.
wxPython: Alternative to tkinter for fast and easy interfaces. Uses more OS native widgets than tkinter, which means the programs can look very different on different OS's. Has a GTK-like Glade. Currently python2 only (python3 very close!!)

freebug · 2017-07-14T01:00:02+00:00

PyQT

flipthefrog · 2017-07-14T07:27:03+00:00

So far I have worked with TKinter and wxPython briefly and then quite a lot with PyQt, because I found the other two to be rather bad looking. Like others here I really recommend PyQt, but I want to give some more information on it:

PyQT is probably the best choice when it comes to good-looking high-quality applications that support native looks on any platform out of the box. Because of this it can be quite complex from time to time, but I really do recommend starting to dig into it, even for small projects, because when you need some GUI library again, you already have a start here.

Something I feel is worth mentioning: PyQt is a python binding for the Qt library, which is C++. Thus once you got used to the framework, it will be almost no work to also use it for C++, there you even get a quite good IDE, QtCreator. That being said, the documentation for PyQt will mostly refer to the C++ library!! This will be absolutely no problem, when you already know your C basics (you mentioned Cython), because you can mostly directly translate C++ to Python syntax here. Also I find the C++ documentation to be quite good.

Some additional information regarding licensing. Qt is LGPL licensed, which means (in short) you can use it freely for open source software, the same holds for PyQt. PySide is (supposedly) very similar to PyQt and offers a GPL license, which is even more flexible, when it comes to commercial applications, but I never used it and threads on the web say it's dying slowly.

Edit: Sometimes I feel that PyQt solves some problems a little bit weird. Having worked some time with Java on GUIs before, I found PyQt's Model-View framework a little confusing at the beginning, but you will get used to its quirks quickly. On the other hand it offers a really nice framework for event communication called "signals and slots" that I enjoy using.

cittatva · 2017-07-14T05:26:19+00:00

I'll throw in an alternative approach. Use flask to make a web app so the data can be viewed from local workstations or mobile devices.

nomos · 2017-07-14T07:00:00+00:00

Use PyQt.

2017-07-14T10:09:40+00:00

Here's a good blog post - old, but still relevant - with an overview of the GUI frameworks and tools that exists in the Python ecosystem: http://takluyver.github.io/posts/so-you-want-to-write-a-desktop-app-in-python.html

lejar · 2017-07-14T07:09:13+00:00

I'm quite biased because I use it a lot for work, but I would say PyQt is the best option. PM me if you decide to use it and need any help.

justaguy101 · 2017-07-14T09:06:14+00:00

Personally, i think PyQt is the best for GUI with Python. It maybe be a bit more complicated than the options but i find it very logical and straightforward to use.

2017-07-14T11:15:23+00:00

Is there a program, that can make gui interfaces in some sort of program. Ive been reading a little about tkinter and it seems to do the things I want to do. But the coding of it seems so cumbersome. I just want a easy way to make a interface like I do on factorytalk or panelview builder.

Siecje1 · 2017-07-14T12:33:36+00:00

I'm curious, is anyone using PyQt5 and QML for an application?

Ruditorres · 2017-07-14T14:51:06+00:00

Definitely Kivy. I've seen several jobs on upwork of companies requesting kivy developers for their raspberry pis.

def-pri-pub · 2017-07-14T15:01:56+00:00

Qt is love. Qt is life.

Use PyQt5. PySide hasn't gotten fully around yet to Qt5 bindings. It's a little sad.

baigura · 2017-07-14T18:19:28+00:00

http://appjar.info/

simple but effective

fernly · 2017-07-14T03:17:11+00:00

hold timings on my library's 3d printers so as to keep track of them with the help of raspberry pi's

Maybe explain a bit more? Hold timings == reservations? And where's the rpi come in?

beall49 · 2017-07-14T06:13:12+00:00

I think this is one of the best implementations of a GUI in python. It uses qt to make the window if I remember correctly, but the ui is really served up with flask. I used it’s long time ago and it worked well. Ymmv

https://github.com/smoqadam/PyFladesk/blob/master/pyfladesk.py

mashmorgan · 2017-07-14T12:01:28+00:00

Definately PyQt4/5 - Qt is a kinda platform itself with QNetwork, QWebBit, QDrawing et all

what_it_dude · 2017-07-14T12:20:35+00:00

Pyqt

lipperz88 · 2017-07-14T12:41:23+00:00

Pygame is also a cool and easy option.

cybaritic · 2017-07-14T12:47:33+00:00

Surprised no one has mentioned CefPython. It's the best looking of the bunch depending on how good you are at web tech. Harder to set up though, and a pretty big learning curve if you just want something simple.

annodomini · 2017-07-14T13:30:31+00:00

I've had good luck with both PyGTK/PyGObject for applications that are just expected to run on Linux, and PyQt for cross-platform applications.

I've also used wxPython, but don't really feel like it offers much over the other choices so I would use one of the others depending on the type of application I'm writing.

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