Ring Programming Language 1.26 Adds Rust Bindings, Native UI
The Ring programming language has been updated to version 1.26, introducing major new features. The release includes direct interoperability with Rust libraries, support for native graphical user interfaces via the Slint framework, and new APIs for closures and subprocess control. These additions aim to position Ring as a more comprehensive environment for both scripting and native applications.
- The Ring programming language was created by Mahmoud Samir Fayed and first released on January 25, 2016. It was designed as a more versatile successor to his earlier domain-specific language, Supernova, and as a tool to build the next version of his Programming Without Coding Technology (PWCT) visual programming software. - The addition of Rust bindings allows Ring developers to leverage Rust's key advantages in performance and memory safety. This enables the integration of performance-critical components written in Rust without the memory safety risks associated with languages like C++. - Slint, the new framework for native GUIs, is a lightweight toolkit that compiles to native code and can run in as little as 300 KiB of RAM. It uses a dedicated Domain Specific Language (DSL) to separate the user interface design from the application's business logic. - Ring is a multi-paradigm language, supporting imperative, procedural, object-oriented, declarative, functional, meta-programming, and natural language programming styles. - The language is highly portable, with its virtual machine running on a wide array of platforms including Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, WebAssembly, and even legacy systems like MS-DOS. - Many of Ring's own components, including its standard library, web library, and the Ring Notepad IDE, are written in Ring itself. - The version 1.26 update was officially released on February 15, 2026.
