JadeView

Introduction

The JadeUI Python SDK is a library for building desktop apps with Python. It provides window management, IPC communication, system integration, and Web front-end integration based on JadeView WebView technology. This documentation tracks SDK 2.3.x, aligned with JadeView v2.3.0 (Build 26G02).

What is the JadeUI Python SDK

The JadeUI Python SDK is an object-oriented Python library that gives Python developers a complete toolchain for creating modern desktop apps. Built on JadeView's WebView technology, it lets developers use Python as the backend and Web technologies (HTML/CSS/JavaScript) as the front end to quickly build cross-platform desktop apps.

Core Features

  • Application management: The JadeUIApp class provides application lifecycle management
  • Window management: The Window class supports creating, configuring, and controlling WebView windows
  • IPC communication: The IPCManager class enables bidirectional communication between the Python backend and the Web front end
  • Local server: The LocalServer class provides a built-in HTTP server for hosting Web content
  • Routing system: The Router class provides a backend-driven routing system that supports built-in and custom templates
  • Event system: The EventEmitter class provides a flexible mechanism for subscribing to and publishing events
  • Dialogs and notifications: Dialog and Notification wrap system file dialogs, message boxes, and desktop notifications
  • System integration: Tray, HotKey, Clipboard, and System support tray icons, global shortcuts, clipboard access, system paths, display info, and version queries
  • YAML storage: Storage wraps the JadeView 2.3 YAML persistence APIs
  • Native menus: Menu.attach_context_menu for context menus (including WebView2 native items)
  • Window enhancements: DevTools, zoom, taskbar progress/flash, content protection, window levels, skip taskbar, no activate, and HWND-to-window-id lookup
  • CLI toolchain: jadeui init / run / doctor / japk / build / download / clean, with pyproject.toml project conventions

Use Cases

The JadeUI Python SDK is suitable for the following scenarios:

  1. Desktop app development: Build cross-platform desktop apps with Python
  2. Utility applications: Create tools and utilities with a modern UI
  3. Data visualization: Combine Web technologies to present data processed by Python
  4. Prototyping: Quickly build app prototypes and demos

Technical Architecture

The JadeUI Python SDK uses the following technical architecture:

Markdown
┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│              Python backend              │
│  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐       │
│  │ JadeUIApp   │  │ IPCManager  │       │
│  │ (lifecycle) │  │ (comms mgmt)│       │
│  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘       │
│  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐       │
│  │ Window      │  │ LocalServer │       │
│  │ (window mgmt)│ │ (asset svc) │       │
│  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘       │
│  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐       │
│  │ Router      │  │ EventEmitter│       │
│  │ (routing)   │  │ (events)    │       │
│  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘       │
└─────────────────┬───────────────────────┘
                  │ FFI/ctypes
┌─────────────────┴───────────────────────┐
│           JadeView DLL (Rust)           │
└─────────────────┬───────────────────────┘
                  │
┌─────────────────┴───────────────────────┐
│        WebView2 / system WebView        │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │       HTML / CSS / JavaScript      │  │
│  │            (front-end UI)          │  │
│  └───────────────────────────────────┘  │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

System Requirements

  • Python version: Python 3.7+
  • Operating system: Windows 10/11
  • Runtime: WebView2 Runtime on Windows
  • Python architecture: Windows supports x86 / x64 / arm64. The SDK downloads and loads the matching JadeView native library for the active Python interpreter architecture.
  • Not supported: Upstream JadeView does not ship a Linux native library yet (still in development), so the SDK currently supports Windows only.

Version and DLL Update Rules

JadeUI automatically downloads the adapted JadeView DLL. The current SDK targets v2.3.0 and may select the latest build within the same release tag, such as a later build after 26G02.

Installation

Install the JadeUI Python SDK via pip:

Shell
pip install jadeui

Or use poetry:

Shell
poetry add jadeui

Then use the CLI:

Shell
jadeui init my-app --frontend html
cd my-app
jadeui run

See CLI and Application packaging.

Quick Example

Python
from jadeui import Window

Window(title="Hello JadeUI", url="https://example.com").run()

License

The JadeUI Python SDK is released under the MIT License, allowing free use, modification, and distribution.

Community and Support

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Quick Start