SDL vs. SDL2

[metis]

Hi all !

I wrote a FFmpeg-MediaPlayer for Lazarus, that (still) uses SDL v1, see 'FFPlay4Laz':
http://forum.lazarus.freepascal.org/index.php/topic,26666.0.html.
More precisely, it uses SDL-Timer, SDL-Audio, SDL-Video and SDL-Events (Screen-, Mouse- and KeyEvents).

I'm not sure, if Updating to SDL2 would really mean a big Advantage for me, because...
- For High-Precision Timing, I use FFmpeg-Timebases, which is more precise than SDL
- SDL1's VideoQuality is sufficient for most Videos & Movies - no 3D-Rendering needed
- SDL2's improved AudioQuality (Int16 -> Int32/Float32) is not so important for me, because
  I use PortAudio for enhanced AudioQuality, anyway.

-> Question:
When, for whom, for which Kind of Application, for which OS/Platform is it really worth Updating to SDL2 (apart from Gaming) ?

[sash]

When, for whom, for which Kind of Application, for which OS/Platform is it really worth Updating to SDL2 (apart from Gaming) ?

Simple common sense tells us sooner or later sdl1 will be deprecated in favor of sdl2. IIRC something in sdl1 already does not work on Mac and Android.

[metis]

Anything more detailed beyond common sense ?

[metis]

In the Meantime, I started Updating the entire FFmpeg-Player to SDL2, see:
https://forum.lazarus.freepascal.org/index.php/topic,26666.msg373185.html#msg373185

MainReasons for me to migrate to SDL2:
- Hardware accelerated Texture based 2D-Rendering; SDL1 has only software-rendered Surfaces
  (Why better? - see: https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/comments/6jfzf2/in_sdl2_what_is_the_difference_between_a_texture/)
- new WindowFunctions, like 'SDL_WINDOWPOS_CENTERED()', 'SDL_SetWindowPosition()', 'SDL_GetWindowPosition()'
  (with SDL1 I had to do all WindowManipulations with the Windows-API)
- it's much easier to make the Player cross-platform, in General
- it's much easier to implement some new PlayerFeatures, like Rotate/Flip the VideoImage and Touchscreen-Support.

In the Following some Points, that "simple common sense" could'n tell me (sorry)... 

Here is, what SDL2 does:
https://wiki.libsdl.org/Introduction
-> GoTo "1.2. What can SDL do?" and "1.3. What platforms does SDL run on?"

And, here are the MainDifferences between SDL1 and SDL2:
https://wiki.libsdl.org/MigrationGuide
-> GoTo "Overview of new features - These are the most important new features in SDL 2.0".
(some Details are explained in the Text below.)

Finally, some special Differences:
https://www.doomworld.com/forum/topic/86368-sdl-1x-vs-sdl-2/
-> GoTo "... new issues which press the case for SDL2 migration, ..."

[jamie]

can that be linked in to an app so I wouldn't need to run it via TProcess and use  Rediretions ?

[metis]

@jamie

can that be linked in to an app so I wouldn't need to run it via TProcess and use  Rediretions ?

Yes - see here for how to do it:
https://forum.lazarus.freepascal.org/index.php/topic,26666.msg337046.html#msg337046
-> GoTo "LCL-Test&Demo-GUI ... The GUI demonstrates how to use the FFPlay4Laz-API".

For how it's done, take a Look at that MediaPlayer's BasicStructure (Projectname: 'FFPlay4Laz').
It shows, how to use SDL-Threads, -UserEvents, -Timer, -Keyboard-Input, -Audio-/Video-Output, for
- SDL1: https://forum.lazarus.freepascal.org/index.php/topic,26666.msg196377.html#msg196377
  -> Download attached 'DrangerTutorial08.c2FPC.lpr.zip', and for
- SDL2: https://forum.lazarus.freepascal.org/index.php/topic,26666.msg373185.html#msg373185
  -> Download attached 'FPlay4Laz2_MINIMALST.7z'.

For, where to learn, how it's done, see...

> SDL-Tutorials for FPC by 'Free Pascal meets SDL' (= the Basics, very well explained for SDL-Beginners):
   SDL1+SDL2: https://www.freepascal-meets-sdl.net/sdl-tutorials/

> SDL-Tutorials for C-Programming by 'Lazy Foo' Productions' (= more detailed, but C only):
   - SDL1: http://lazyfoo.net/SDL_tutorials/index.php
   - SDL2: http://lazyfoo.net/tutorials/SDL/index.php