Humble UI is an innovative, Clojure-based framework designed to simplify the creation of high-quality desktop user interfaces. Developed by Nikita Prokopov, the project aims to provide an alternative to existing frameworks like Electron while addressing many of their inherent performance and scalability issues. Since its inception in 2020, Humble UI has been evolving steadily, with the primary goal of enabling developers to build cross-platform desktop applications without relying on the web. This results in apps that avoid the common pitfalls of web-based frameworks, such as performance bottlenecks, heavy memory requirements, and bloated bundle sizes.
Prokopov highlights that Humble UI’s development is still a work in progress, with no specific timeline for its full release. Despite this, he believes the framework is nearing the completion of its core features and anticipates entering a phase where development will focus more on refining and expanding the framework’s capabilities. In a recent statement, Prokopov mentioned the framework would be presented in a workshop later in the year, with key parts of the project feeling well-defined. He is hopeful that this will mark a shift toward more widespread adoption and community involvement.
The framework’s foundation in Clojure sets it apart from many alternatives. Clojure was chosen for its performance benefits, REPL support, and Prokopov’s familiarity with the language. Clojure’s architecture offers a distinct advantage in UI development due to its multithreading support and dynamic, general-purpose nature. Prokopov points out that, unlike JavaScript and Chrome (which often lead to sluggish performance), Clojure allows developers to leverage the full power of their system without sacrificing speed or responsiveness. This makes it particularly well-suited for building performant desktop apps that can scale well across different platforms.
In addition to being an alternative to Electron, Humble UI also fits into the broader landscape of Clojure-based desktop development tools. There are other notable Clojure projects like Seesaw, Membrane, babashka, Clerk, and Overtone, all contributing to the growing ecosystem of non-web-based desktop applications. However, Humble UI stands out for its focus on creating a framework that avoids the common drawbacks of web-heavy solutions, while still embracing the flexibility and power that Clojure offers. As the project continues to evolve, it promises to provide developers with a more efficient and scalable approach to building desktop applications.