jonpalmisc / maui

Open source desktop app for the free Wolfram Engine

Maui

Maui is an open source desktop application providing a user interface for the free Wolfram Engine. It supports both textual and graphical output.

Maui works macOS, Ubuntu, and Windows.

Dependencies

Maui has two main dependencies:

• Qt
• WSTP (formerly MathLink) C API (part of Wolfram Engine)

The WSTP C API is included with the Wolfram Engine which is free for personal use. Before attempting to build Maui, download and install the Wolfram Engine. For assistance, see the official setup guide.

Build instructions

Once all dependencies are installed, simply use CMake to generate the appropriate build environment, then build Maui:

cmake -S . -B build -DWSTP_API_PATH="..." # -GNinja
cmake --build build

If the WSTP C API headers and libraries are already in your system paths (which is unlikely), then passing the -DWSTP_API_PATH option to CMake is not needed.

Setup and usage

If you have not yet launched the Wolfram Engine CLI, go ahead and do so, making sure to complete the activation process. Maui will not work if the Wolfram Engine is not activated.

Upon launching Maui for the first time, a configuration dialog will appear. You will need to specify the path of the Wolfram Kernel to use as the backend.

If you would like Maui to remember your choice, check the "Use as default kernel" checkbox.

Upon pressing the "Launch" button, the main Maui window will appear and you can begin working.

Contribution guidelines

Contributions are welcome! All code is formatted with clang-format using the built-in "WebKit" preset; please ensure your code is formatted when submitting a pull request.

License

Copyright © 2021 Jon Palmisciano; licensed under the BSD 3-Clause license.

maui's Issues

Add configuration dialog to main menu

The configuration dialog should be able to be opened from the main menu.

Add "quick actions" dropdown menu to cells

Cells should have a tool button enabling the user to quickly copy the input/output, etc.

Add support for output references

Attempting to reference a previous output via %N does not work.

Input/output packet numbering info is not handled

The cell input/output number is currently guessed via the UI. The engine communicates this information and it should be handled.

Support saving and loading Notebook

We should add the ability to save the commands (and results) to the disk, and then load it back into the UI.

Package for macOS

A build task should be added to package the app for macOS.

Create app icon

Needed for #12.

UI fonts aren't bundled in the repo

The UI currently uses the Ubuntu and Ubuntu Mono fonts, but these aren't present on everyone's systems — they should be included with the build.

Optionally render output with LaTeX

Output is currently limited to plain text. Being able to receive output as LaTeX and render it would provide far greater graphical fidelity.

Automatically focus next cell after submitting input

The next cell should be focused automatically when a cell is evaluated for the first time. This should not apply to cells that aren't the last cell.

Add kernel path prompt on startup

Currently the kernel path is hardcoded for macOS. This is obviously bad.

Add support for displaying graphics

Functions like Plot3D currently cannot be used since the UI & engine wrapper do not support handling/displaying graphics.

Further develop UI options

Potential options include:

• Multiple color themes
• Choice between "spaced" and "condensed" layouts

Poor visibility of the configuration dialog in dark mode

Compatibility needs to be verified on other platforms

I've only tested Maui on macOS (ARM64). Other computers exist; Maui should probably be able to run on them as well.