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https://github.com/beeware/briefcase-linux-appimage-template

A template for generating Linux AppImage projects with Briefcase
https://github.com/beeware/briefcase-linux-appimage-template

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A template for generating Linux AppImage projects with Briefcase

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README 

        
Briefcase Linux AppImage Template

=================================



A `Cookiecutter `__ template for

building Python apps that will run under Linux, packaged as an AppImage.



Using this template

-------------------



The easiest way to use this project is to not use it at all - at least, not

directly. `Briefcase `__ is a tool that

uses this template, rolling it out using data extracted from a

``pyproject.toml`` configuration file.



However, if you *do* want use this template directly...



1. Install `cookiecutter`_. This is a tool used to bootstrap complex project

   templates::



    $ pip install cookiecutter



2. Run ``cookiecutter`` on the template::



    $ cookiecutter https://github.com/beeware/briefcase-linux-appimage-template



   This will ask you for a number of details of your application, including the

   `name` of your application (which should be a valid PyPI identifier), and

   the `Formal Name` of your application (the full name you use to describe

   your app). The remainder of these instructions will assume a `name` of

   ``my-project``, and a formal name of ``My Project``.



3. `Obtain a Python Linux support package for x86_64`_, and extract it into

   the ``My Project/My Project.AppDir/usr`` directory generated by the

   template. This will give you a self-contained Python install. If installed

   correctly, there should be a ``My Project/My

   Project.AppDir/usr/bin/python3`` binary, as well as some other

   Python-related files.



   Alternatively, you can download the `Python-Linux-support`_ project, and

   build your own versions of these frameworks. You will need to do this if

   you need to build for an architecture other than `x86_64`.



4. Add your code to the template, into the ``My Project/My Project.AppDir/usr/app``

   directory. At the very minimum, you need to have an

   ``app//__main__.py`` file that defines an entry point that will

   start your application.



   If your code has any dependencies, they should be installed into the

   ``My Project/My Project.AppDir/usr/app_packages`` directory.



If you've done this correctly, a project with a formal name of ``My Project``,

with an app name of ``my-project`` should have a directory structure that

looks something like::



    My Project/

        My Project.AppDir/

            usr/

                app/

                    my_project/

                        __init__.py

                        __main__.py

                        app.py

                app_packages/

                    ...

                bin/

                    python3

                    ...

                lib/

                    ...

                share/

                    ...

            com.example.my-project.desktop

        briefcase.toml



This directory can then be compiled into an AppImage using `linuxdeploy`_.

Download the `linuxdeploy AppImage`_, and make the binary executable::



    $ chmod +x linuxdeploy-x86_64.AppImage



Then compile your AppDir directory (substituting your release version number)::



    $ VERSION=1.2.3 ./linuxdeploy-x86_64.AppImage --appdir=My\ Project/My\ Project.AppDir -o appimage -d My\ Project/My\ Project.AppDir/com.example.my-project.desktop



This will produce ``My Project-1.2.3-x86_64.AppImage``. This image can given

to any other Linux user, and should run without installing any other

dependencies.



Next steps

----------



Of course, running Python code isn't very interesting by itself.



To do something interesting, you'll need to work with the native system

libraries to draw widgets and respond to user input. The `GTK+`_ GUI library

provides Python bindings that you can use to build a user interface.

Alternatively, you could use a cross-platform widget toolkit that supports

Windows (such as `Toga`_) to provide a GUI for your application.



If you have any external library dependencies (like Toga, or anything other

third-party library), you should install the library code into the

``app_packages`` directory. This directory is the same as a  ``site_packages``

directory on a desktop Python install.



.. _cookiecutter: https://github.com/cookiecutter/cookiecutter

.. _linuxdeploy: https://github.com/linuxdeploy/linuxdeploy

.. _linuxdeploy AppImage: https://github.com/linuxdeploy/linuxdeploy/releases/download/continuous/linuxdeploy-x86_64.AppImage

.. _Obtain a Python Linux support package for x86_64: https://github.com/beeware/Python-Linux-support

.. _Toga: https://beeware.org/project/projects/libraries/toga

.. _GTK+: https://python-gtk-3-tutorial.readthedocs.io/