Should I use Perl/Tk, Tcl::Tk or Tkx for a Perl GUI?

Question

I really like Perl/Tk, but have come to the opinion that it's DOA. I think Tcl::Tk and Tkx are better solutions. Assume I drop Perl/Tk. Is the "most supported" route to go with Tcl::Tk (which hasn't been updated since 2007, and whose author seemingly cannot be reached), or Tkx? Are either of these actively used/supported?

Answer 1

I have had good result with wxPerl, here is a short article on O'Reilly

Note: I was targeting win32 and this was about 5 years ago.

Answer 2

Under the hood both Tcl::Tk and Tkx use the Tcl module as a bridge to Tcl/Tk. The difference is in the API they present to Perl.

Tkx was developed by ActiveState, who use it in the GUI for their tools. (e.g. PPM) It's actively used, though it's hard to say how widely. It's supported as well, but because it's such a thin layer over Tcl there's not a great deal to support. In a way that's a good thing -- there's little to change or break -- but it does give the impression of abandonware.

Tcl::Tk started as a side project to demonstrate that API compatibility with Perl/Tk was possible. I love the idea of this -- it would be wonderful to only need to change use Tk to use Tcl::Tk and get the benefits of newer versions of Tcl/Tk like tile (theme) support. Unfortunately, it's not there yet. There seems to be some work being done, but not a lot. It could really use more developers.

Personally, I use Tkx. If you're experienced at developing in Perl/Tk the transition isn't too painful, but I think it would be a difficult place to start. The worst part is that you need to refer to the Tcl/Tk documentation in order to use it. That's great if you know Tcl as there are very few surprises introduced by the bridge to Perl, but if you don't it's awkward to translate from an unfamiliar language.