OpenVED

Modern 2D vector geometry and rendering engine for Qt6/C++

In memory of Jamshid Sharmahd.

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Overview

OpenVED is a lightweight 2D vector drawing and geometry engine originally developed in the late 1990s in Hannover, Germany.

The project has been modernized and ported to modern C++ and Qt6 while preserving its original geometric concepts and lightweight architecture.

OpenVED focuses on:

• 2D vector geometry
• precise geometric primitives
• lightweight rendering
• modern Qt integration
• clean CMake-based builds
• reduced legacy dependencies

The original codebase has been refactored to remove historical ballast, obsolete C libraries, and platform-specific legacy code.

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Features

• Modern C++23 implementation
• Qt6-based rendering and UI integration
• 2D vector primitives
• Geometry operations
• Lightweight architecture
• Cross-platform design
• CMake build system
• Minimal external dependencies

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Project Goals

OpenVED is intended as:

• a reusable 2D vector geometry engine
• a foundation for CAD-like applications
• an educational geometry/codebase
• a preservation of historical engineering software concepts modernized for current systems

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Technology

Component	Technology
Language	C++23
GUI/Rendering	Qt6
Build System	CMake
Platforms	Linux, macOS, Windows

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Build

Requirements

• C++23 compatible compiler
• Qt6 Widgets
• CMake 3.24+
• Ninja (recommended)
• FreeType development files
• HarfBuzz development files

FreeType and HarfBuzz can be provided either by the system/package manager or vendored under third_party/freetype and third_party/harfbuzz.

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Build Example

git clone https://github.com/YOURNAME/OpenVED.git
cd OpenVED

mkdir build
cd build

cmake .. -G Ninja
cmake --build .

macOS Build Example

Using Homebrew:

brew install cmake ninja qt freetype harfbuzz

git clone https://github.com/YOURNAME/OpenVED.git
cd OpenVED

cmake -S . -B build -G Ninja \
  -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH="$(brew --prefix qt);$(brew --prefix freetype);$(brew --prefix harfbuzz)"

cmake --build build

Windows Build Example

Using vcpkg and Visual Studio 2022:

git clone https://github.com/YOURNAME/OpenVED.git
cd OpenVED

vcpkg install qtbase freetype harfbuzz --triplet x64-windows

cmake -S . -B build -G Ninja `
  -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=C:/vcpkg/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake `
  -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=x64-windows

cmake --build build

For a fully static Windows dependency build, use a static vcpkg triplet:

vcpkg install qtbase freetype harfbuzz --triplet x64-windows-static

cmake -S . -B build-static -G Ninja `
  -DCMAKE_TOOLCHAIN_FILE=C:/vcpkg/scripts/buildsystems/vcpkg.cmake `
  -DVCPKG_TARGET_TRIPLET=x64-windows-static

cmake --build build-static

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Design Principles

OpenVED intentionally avoids unnecessary complexity and large framework abstractions where possible.

The goal is to provide:

• understandable geometry code
• long-term maintainability
• lightweight architecture
• direct control over rendering and geometry structures

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Status

The project is currently under active modernization and cleanup.

APIs and internal structures may still evolve.

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License

OpenVED is released under the MIT License.

This project uses Qt under the LGPL license, as well as FreeType and HarfBuzz under their respective licenses.

See LICENSE for details.

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Acknowledgement

This project is dedicated to the memory of Jamshid Sharmahd, a talented software engineer, independent thinker, and longtime friend.

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Author

Originally developed in Hannover, Germany.

Modernized and maintained by Lukas Rasegi in Hannover, Germany.