Darling (software)

Darling

Original author(s)	Luboš Doležel
Development status	Active
Operating system	Linux
Type	Compatibility layer
License	GPL 3[1]
Website	www.darlinghq.org

Darling is a free and open source software application that aims to allow applications designed for OS X to run on the Linux operating system. Darling is a compatibility layer, like Wine. It duplicates functions of OS X by providing alternative implementations of the libraries and frameworks that OS X programs call.^[2] This method of duplication differs from other methods that might also be considered emulation, where OS X programs run in a virtual machine.

The project started in Summer 2012 and builds on a previous project, named maloader, which was discontinued due to a lack of time. The developer is testing applications, such as Midnight Commander or The Unarchiver on the layer. So far, the layer has been shown to work with many console apps and some simple GUI apps.^[3]

The project relies on GNUstep for the implementation of certain frameworks and provides wrappers on top of common Linux libraries to reuse as much existing open source code as possible.^[4]

The project may also support iOS applications in the future.^[5]

A simple 'HelloWorld' Cocoa app demonstrated on OS X (left) and Linux (right)

References

1. http://www.darlinghq.org/source-code
2. Brodkin, Jon (6 August 2013). "OS X apps run on Linux with Wine-like emulator for Mac software". Ars Technica. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
3. "Project Status". Darling project. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
4. "FAQ". Darling project. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
5. Heath, Nick (15 July 2013). "OS X apps on their way to Linux courtesy of Darling project". ZDNet. Retrieved 23 January 2014.