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gleditor 🎨✨

gleditor

Version License Platform OpenGL ES Sanity

The Shader Editor That Actually Works™

A standalone OpenGL ES shader editor that doesn't make you want to flip your desk.
Create, test, and debug GLSL shaders with real-time preview and syntax highlighting.
Because life's too short to edit shaders in Notepad.

🤔 Why gleditor?

Let's be real: editing shaders shouldn't feel like debugging assembly code in the dark. We created gleditor because:

  • ✅ Vim + shader crashes in the background = masochism (we're eliminating that)
  • ✅ Copying from Shadertoy and praying it works = not a workflow
  • ✅ Recompiling every 5 seconds to see if your vec3 is actually pink = inefficient
  • ✅ We needed a catchy name and "OpenGL_ES_Shader_Editor_v2_final_FINAL_actually_final.exe" was taken

gleditor gives you a proper IDE for GLSL shaders with live preview, syntax highlighting, autocomplete, and a tab system that won't ghost you when you have 47 shaders open.

✨ Features That'll Make You Go "Finally!"

🎨 Live Preview

See your shader running in real-time. Watch your beautiful plasma effect... or your accidental white square of shame. Either way, instant feedback.

📝 GLSL Syntax Highlighting

Because reading plain text GLSL is like reading the Matrix. We colorize your vec3s, uniforms, and mainImage() so your eyes don't bleed.

🔧 OpenGL ES 2.0 / 3.0 / 3.1 / 3.2 Support

We support all the versions. Yes, even ES 3.2 with geometry shaders. Yes, we tested it. No, our GPU didn't explode (much).

🎯 Shadertoy Compatible

Copy shaders from Shadertoy and they just work*. Full support for:

  • iTime, iResolution, iMouse
  • mainImage() entry point
  • Automatic uniform injection
  • (*99% of the time. That 1% is on you for using triple-nested raymarching.)

🗂️ Multi-Tab Workflow

Open multiple shaders at once. Switch between them with ease. Close tabs without losing work. Revolutionary, we know.

💾 Save/Load Shaders

  • Ctrl+S to save
  • Ctrl+Shift+S for Save As
  • Ctrl+O to load
  • Your work actually persists! What a concept!

🚀 Auto-Compile Mode

Enable auto-compile and watch your shader update as you type. It's like autocomplete but more judgy about your syntax errors.

📦 Template Library

Start with professionally crafted templates:

  • 🌌 Cosmic Tunnel - Trippy wormhole effects
  • 🌊 Plasma - Smooth animated gradients
  • 🎱 Raymarching Sphere - 3D rendering starter
  • 🔢 Mandelbrot Set - Infinite zoom fractals
  • 💧 Water Ripples - Interactive wave simulation
  • ✨ Starfield - Parallax space background
  • 🎨 Gradient - Simple color transitions
  • 📄 Blank - For the bold and the brave

⌨️ 170+ Autocomplete Items

Type mainI → press Tab → get full Shadertoy template. We have keywords, functions, snippets, and all the GLSL built-ins you keep forgetting.

🎮 Interactive Mouse Tracking

Your shader gets iMouse uniform. Move your cursor, control the shader. Make interactive effects. Pretend you're a wizard.

🟢 FPS Counter in Matrix Green

Real-time performance monitoring at #00FF41. Because everything looks more professional in hacker green.

🐛 Error Panel with Line Numbers

Shader won't compile? We'll tell you exactly where you messed up (line 42, probably that missing semicolon).

🎨 Customizable Everything

  • 12+ color themes (Solarized, Monokai, Dracula, you name it)
  • Font size and family
  • Tab width (2 or 4 spaces? We don't judge... much)
  • Line numbers, bracket matching, smart home/end
  • Split view orientation (horizontal or vertical)

💾 Session Persistence

Enable "Remember Open Tabs" and all your shaders will be there next time you open the app. Even unsaved ones. Magic.

🖼️ Three View Modes

  • Both: Editor + Preview side-by-side
  • Editor Only: Fullscreen code editing (preview paused to save GPU)
  • Preview Only: Fullscreen shader preview (perfect for demos)

Tab bar always visible for instant shader switching. No more hunting through menus.

📸 Screenshots

gleditor in action

Live shader editing with real-time preview, syntax highlighting, and multiple tabs. Retro vibes included.

🚀 Installation

Quick Install (Linux/macOS)

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/gleditor.git
cd gleditor
./install.sh

The automated installer will:

  • ✅ Detect your OS and package manager
  • ✅ Install all required dependencies
  • ✅ Build the application
  • ✅ Install system-wide
  • ✅ Set up desktop integration

Quick Build (No Install)

Just want to build and run without installing?

# Linux/macOS
./build.sh
./bin/gleditor

# Windows (Command Prompt)
build.bat
bin\gleditor.exe

# Or with options
./build.sh --debug --verbose
./build.sh --clean --cmake

Platform-Specific Installation

For detailed installation instructions including Windows, manual builds, and troubleshooting, see INSTALL.md.

Quick links:

Requirements

  • GTK+3 (>= 3.20)
  • GTKSourceView 4
  • OpenGL ES 2.0+ / OpenGL (platform-dependent)
  • C compiler (GCC, Clang, or MSVC)
  • CMake or Make

🎮 Usage

Basic Workflow

  1. Launch gleditor

    gleditor

  2. Create a new shader

    • Click New or press Ctrl+N
    • Pick a template (or go blank if you're brave)

  3. Write your shader

    • Use the Shadertoy mainImage() format
    • Access iTime, iResolution, iMouse uniforms
    • Watch the live preview update as you type (with auto-compile on)

  4. Save your work

    • Ctrl+S to save
    • Ctrl+Shift+S to save as

  5. Install to NeoWall (if applicable)

    • Click the Install button
    • Select shader type
    • Your wallpaper just got 10x cooler

Keyboard Shortcuts (Because We're Not Animals)

Shortcut Action
Ctrl+N New shader (template picker)
Ctrl+O Open shader file
Ctrl+S Save current shader
Ctrl+Shift+S Save As
Ctrl+W Close current tab
Ctrl+Q Quit application
Ctrl+R Recompile shader
Ctrl+Space Trigger autocomplete
F5 Toggle Editor/Preview view
F6 Toggle split orientation (H/V)
Space Pause/Resume animation
Tab Indent selection
Shift+Tab Un-indent selection

Shadertoy Compatibility

gleditor supports the standard Shadertoy uniforms:

uniform vec3 iResolution;     // Viewport resolution (in pixels)
uniform float iTime;          // Shader playback time (in seconds)
uniform vec4 iMouse;          // Mouse pixel coords (xy: current, zw: click)

Example Shadertoy shader:

void mainImage(out vec4 fragColor, in vec2 fragCoord) {
    // Normalize coordinates to [0, 1]
    vec2 uv = fragCoord / iResolution.xy;
    
    // Animated gradient
    vec3 col = 0.5 + 0.5 * cos(iTime + uv.xyx + vec3(0, 2, 4));
    
    fragColor = vec4(col, 1.0);
}

Copy this into gleditor, hit Compile (or enable auto-compile), and watch the rainbow magic happen.

⚙️ Settings

Access via Settings button or menu. Configure:

Appearance

  • Theme: 12+ color schemes (Solarized Light/Dark, Monokai, Dracula, etc.)
  • Font: Family and size
  • Line Numbers: Show/hide
  • Current Line Highlight: Enable/disable
  • Background Pattern: Subtle grid for code alignment

Behavior

  • Tab Width: 2, 4, or 8 spaces
  • Auto-Indent: Automatically indent new lines
  • Smart Home/End: Home key jumps to first non-whitespace
  • Bracket Matching: Highlight matching (), {}, []
  • Auto-Completion: Enable/disable GLSL autocomplete

Compilation

  • Auto-Compile: Compile shader as you type (slight delay)
  • Shader Speed: Time multiplier (1.0 = normal, 2.0 = 2x speed)

Session

  • Remember Open Tabs: Restore tabs on restart (saves to ~/.config/gleditor/tabs_session.ini)

All settings auto-save to ~/.config/gleditor/settings.conf.

🐛 Debugging

Shader Won't Compile?

  1. Check the Error Panel (click the error icon in status bar)

    • Line numbers provided
    • Actual OpenGL error messages (not encrypted)

  2. Common Issues:

    • Missing semicolons (classic)
    • Undeclared variables
    • Type mismatches (float vs int)
    • GLSL version issues (ES 2.0 vs 3.0 syntax)

  3. Enable Verbose Output:

    gleditor --verbose

Performance Issues?

  • Lower shader complexity (raymarching = GPU torture)
  • Check FPS counter (bottom right)
  • Disable auto-compile if typing is laggy
  • Pause preview when coding (saves GPU cycles)

Crashes?

First, check if it's your shader or the editor:

  1. Try a simple shader (gradient template)
  2. If that works, your shader might be doing evil things (infinite loops, divide by zero, etc.)
  3. If simple shaders crash, file a bug report with your GPU info

🔧 Development

Project Structure

gleditor/
├── src/
│   ├── main.c                  # Entry point
│   ├── shader_editor.h         # Main editor API
│   ├── editor/                 # Editor components
│   │   ├── editor_window.c     # Main window & layout
│   │   ├── editor_text.c       # Code editor (GTKSourceView)
│   │   ├── editor_preview.c    # OpenGL preview widget
│   │   ├── editor_toolbar.c    # Toolbar buttons
│   │   ├── editor_statusbar.c  # Status bar (FPS, errors, etc.)
│   │   ├── editor_settings.c   # Settings dialog & persistence
│   │   ├── editor_tabs.c       # Tab manager
│   │   ├── editor_templates.c  # Shader template library
│   │   ├── glsl_completion.c   # Autocomplete provider
│   │   └── ...
│   └── shader_lib/             # Shader runtime & API
│       ├── neowall_shader_api.c
│       └── shader_core.c
├── include/
│   └── platform_compat.h       # Cross-platform compatibility layer
├── data/
│   ├── gleditor.svg            # Logo
│   ├── icon.svg                # Application icon
│   ├── gleditor.desktop        # Linux desktop entry
│   └── screenshot.png          # Screenshot
├── CMakeLists.txt              # CMake build system (cross-platform)
├── Makefile                    # Make build system (Unix)
├── build.sh                    # Build script (Linux/macOS)
├── build.bat                   # Build script (Windows)
├── install.sh                  # Automated installer (Linux/macOS)
├── install.bat                 # Automated installer (Windows)
└── INSTALL.md                  # Detailed installation guide

Building from Source

gleditor supports two build systems - choose the one that fits your workflow:

Quick Build (Easiest)

# Linux/macOS
./build.sh              # Auto-selects best build system
./bin/gleditor          # Run without installing

# Windows
build.bat               # Builds with CMake/Make
bin\gleditor.exe        # Run without installing

# With options
./build.sh --debug      # Debug build
./build.sh --clean      # Clean build
./build.sh --verbose    # Verbose output
./build.sh --cmake      # Force CMake
./build.sh --make       # Force Make

Option 1: Make (Recommended for Linux)

make
sudo make install

Pros: Fast, simple, no CMake dependency
Best for: Quick Linux builds, traditional Unix workflow

Option 2: CMake (Recommended for macOS/Windows)

mkdir build && cd build
cmake -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release ..
cmake --build .
sudo cmake --install .

Pros: Cross-platform, IDE integration, modern standard
Best for: Windows, macOS, or if you need advanced features

Both produce identical binaries. See INSTALL.md for detailed instructions.

Contributing

PRs welcome! Please:

  • Keep code style consistent (see existing files)
  • Test on your platform before submitting
  • Add comments for non-obvious logic
  • Update README if adding features

Debugging Build Issues

# See full compilation commands
make V=1

# Check dependencies
pkg-config --modversion gtk+-3.0
pkg-config --modversion gtksourceview-4
pkg-config --modversion egl

# Check OpenGL ES support
ls /usr/include/GLES2/
ls /usr/include/GLES3/

📜 License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details.

TL;DR: Use it, modify it, sell it, just don't sue us if your GPU catches fire.

🙏 Acknowledgments

  • GTK Project - For the GUI toolkit
  • GTKSourceView - For syntax highlighting magic
  • Shadertoy - For inspiring a generation of shader wizards
  • Our GPUs - For not dying during development (mostly)
  • Coffee - The real MVP

🆘 Support & Contact

  • Bug Reports: GitHub Issues
  • Feature Requests: Also GitHub Issues (tag as enhancement)
  • Questions: GitHub Discussions or open an issue

🎯 Roadmap

Future features we're considering (no promises):

  • Cross-platform support (Linux, macOS, Windows)
  • CMake build system
  • Automated installers
  • Shader export to various formats
  • Multi-pass rendering
  • Texture/image inputs
  • Video export (render to mp4)
  • Plugin system
  • Cloud shader library
  • Package managers (apt, homebrew, chocolatey)
  • AppImage / Flatpak / Snap (Linux)
  • AI-powered shader generation (kidding... unless? 👀)

💡 Tips & Tricks

  1. Use Ctrl+Space liberally - 170+ autocomplete items await you
  2. Enable auto-compile - Instant feedback = faster iteration
  3. Start with templates - Don't reinvent the wheel (or the plasma effect)
  4. Watch the FPS counter - If it drops below 30, your shader might be too ambitious
  5. Split view vertically on ultrawide - More code visible at once
  6. Use F5 to toggle views - Quick preview fullscreen
  7. Save often - Ctrl+S is muscle memory for a reason
  8. Read OpenGL errors carefully - They're cryptic but not malicious

Made with ❤️, ☕, and a questionable amount of vec3s

gleditor - Because your shaders deserve better than Notepad

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A standalone OpenGL ES shader editor that doesn't make you want to flip your desk. Create, test, and debug GLSL shaders with real-time preview and syntax highlighting. Because life's too short to edit shaders in Notepad.

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