Install libdrawtext with Homebrew

Project links

• Homepage
• Repository

Commands and aliases

• font2glyphmap

Project history

The README describes libdrawtext as an OpenGL text-rendering helper that can also render into plain RGBA pixel buffers starting with version 0.3. Its copyright range begins in 2011, and the public tags show release_0.1 in August 2012, followed by release_0.2 and 0.2.1 in April 2014, release_0.3 in March 2016, release_0.4 in July 2016, v0.5 in February 2019, and v0.6 in February 2023.

The 0.6 release notes are maintenance-oriented: glyph metric changes, GL backend fixes, Android/OpenGL ES compatibility adjustments, GCC 10 compatibility, and build fixes. That pattern fits a compact library maintained for embedding rather than a broad end-user application.

Adoption history

Evidence for broad ecosystem adoption is thin, but the Homebrew package and GitHub repository show enough activity for developers who want a lightweight OpenGL text library without pulling in a full UI or game engine stack. Its appeal is strongest for demos, visualization programs, and small graphics tools that need text overlays.

How it is used

The README points users to example programs and the heavily commented `drawtext.h` header. It supports Unix and MinGW builds through `./configure`, `make`, and `make install`, with FreeType and OpenGL both described as optional depending on whether glyphmaps or pixel-buffer rendering are used.

Why package nerds care

libdrawtext is a classic small-library package: narrow scope, optional dependencies, C ABI, and a helper binary. For package maintainers, the interesting part is keeping a minimal OpenGL-era text utility available without dragging in larger graphics frameworks.

Timeline

• 2011: Copyright range begins for libdrawtext.
• 2012: release_0.1 tag published.
• 2014: release_0.2 and release_0.2.1 tags published.
• 2016: release_0.3 added RGBA pixel-buffer rendering; release_0.4 followed.
• 2019: v0.5 release published.
• 2023: v0.6 release published with GL, glyph metric, Android, GCC, and build fixes.

Related projects

• The README names FreeType as the glyph-rasterization dependency and OpenGL as the main rendering backend. The included `font2glyphmap` utility and example programs are the closest related project surfaces inside the repository.

Sources

• https://github.com/jtsiomb/libdrawtext
• https://github.com/jtsiomb/libdrawtext/releases
• https://github.com/jtsiomb/libdrawtext/tags