AlloUI application library for Alloverse

Nevyn Bengtsson, [email protected], 2020-05-07

This Lua library lets you build spatial applications for Alloverse using a high-level and easy to use UI library that should feel familar to people coming from iOS, Android or web development, rather than a game development background.

I'm still learning how to package lua code. At the moment, this is how you create a new alloapp:

1. Install clang, cmake, luajit
2. Create your own repo, with a src/main.lua and src/app.lua
3. Add submodules:

git submodule add https://github.com/alloverse/allonet.git lib/allonet
git submodule add https://github.com/alloverse/alloui-lua.git lib/alloui-lua
git submodule update --init --recursive

4. Compile liballonet.so and copy it to your src folder:

cd lib/allonet
mkdir build; cd build
cmake ..
make allonet
cp liballonet.so ../../../src/
echo "*.so" >> ../../../.gitignore

5. Put this bootstrap code in src/main.lua:

scriptPath = arg[0]
srcDir = string.sub(scriptPath, 1, string.find(scriptPath, "main.lua")-2)
libDir = srcDir.."/../lib"

package.cpath = string.format("%s;%s/?.so", package.cpath, srcDir)
package.path = string.format(
    "%s;%s/?.lua;%s/alloui-lua/lua/?.lua;%s/alloui-lua/lib/cpml/?.lua;%s/alloui-lua/lib/pl/lua/?.lua",
    package.path,
    srcDir,
    libDir,
    libDir,
    libDir
)

require("liballonet")
Client = require("alloui.client")
ui = require("alloui.ui")
require("app")

6. Put your app in src/app.lua:

local client = Client(
    arg[1], 
    "allo-jukebox"
)
local app = App(client)

local myAppView = ui.View(ui.Bounds(0,0,0,1,1,1))
-- ... configure your app's startup UI


app.mainView = myAppView
app:connect()
app:run()

6. Launch your app like this:

   luajit src/main.lua alloplace://nevyn.places.alloverse.com

(substituting your own room URL)