TechxArtisanStudio/Openterface_QT 0.4.0

0.4.0 – Enhanced Portability & Performance for uConsole

on GitHub

We're excited to announce Openterface_QT v0.4.0, a major step forward in stability, cross-platform support, and performance—specifically optimized for the uConsole portable device!

This release focuses on robust static builds, ARM64 compatibility, and embedded system performance, making it the most reliable version yet for portable and headless deployments.

⚠️ Release Note: In this release, we are only officially releasing the arm64 static build for uConsole.
Other platform packages (e.g., amd64) are currently unstable due to recent changes in the build system and are not recommended for production use.
We appreciate your patience as we stabilize the multi-platform build pipeline.

🔧 Key Highlights

✅ uConsole Optimized Static Builds

• ✅ Static binaries with FFmpeg & GStreamer support for seamless deployment on embedded systems like uConsole (#340).
• ✅ Dynamic dlopen wrapper now supports selective loading of VAAPI and graphics libraries, improving compatibility across diverse hardware (#343).

🐳 Robust & Reproducible Build System

• ✅ Docker-based build environments for both dynamic and static builds, ensuring consistent packaging (#332).
• ✅ Cross-compilation support for ARM64 using QEMU, enabling native-like performance on ARM devices (#317).
• ✅ Improved GitHub Actions for reliable arm64 package builds (#337).
• ✅ Fixed static build issues and GHCR image naming for smoother CI/CD (#333, #335).

⚙️ Performance & Stability Improvements

• ✅ Reduced CPU usage on Linux – major optimization for smoother operation on low-power devices (#331).
• ✅ Fixed screen flickering on small displays after resize operations (#319).
• ✅ Serial port thread optimized and initial device selection fixed for more reliable hardware communication (#339).

🖥️ Hardware & Input Support

• ✅ KVM Go support added for enhanced virtualization control (#312).
• ✅ EDID setting tool included to help manage display compatibility (#320).
• ✅ FFmpeg backend enhanced with device hotplug detection and better error handling (#342).
• ✅ Belgian AZERTY keyboard layout started (early support) – thanks to our new contributor! (#240).

🛠️ Developer & Build Convenience

• ✅ One-line build script added for faster local development (#316).
• ✅ Default serial baud rate changed to 9600 for better compatibility with common devices (#341).

🎉 New Contributor Welcome

A big thank you to @Fescron for their first contribution adding support for the Belgian AZERTY keyboard layout! We're thrilled to have you on board 🎉

📦 Downloads

Available for this release:

• ✅ openterface_qt-v0.4.0-linux-arm64-static – Recommended for uConsole

❌ Other builds (e.g., amd64) are not stable in this release due to ongoing build system changes. Please avoid using them in production.

🛠️ Installation Guide for uConsole

Follow these steps to install and run Openterface_QT on your uConsole:

1. Install Required Dependencies

Ensure your system has the necessary graphics and multimedia libraries:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y libxcb-cursor0 libva-dev vainfo va-driver-all

💡 These packages enable VAAPI hardware acceleration, which improves video performance and reduces CPU usage.

2. Download and Extract

# Download the portable package from GitHub Releases
unzip openterfaceQT-v0.4.0-linux-arm64-portable.zip
cd openterfaceQT-v0.4.0-linux-arm64-portable

3. Run the Application

Make the binary executable and start Openterface_QT:

chmod +x openterfaceQT
./openterfaceQT

✅ You're all set! The portable version requires no installation—just run and enjoy.

✔️ Tested Distributions

Below is a summary of tested OS images on uConsole with performance and functionality observations:

📝 Recommendation: Use GStreamer backend on supported distributions for best performance.
Kali-based images show significant issues—please consider using Clockwork or Bookworm for optimal experience.

📚 Full Changelog

👉 See all changes from v0.3.19 to v0.4.0