OpenZinc is a multiplatform C++ Graphic User Interface based on the commercial products Zinc Application Frameworks version 1.0 through 4.2. This code base is now being made available as a free open source project

A large number of graphic user interfaces exist, each with its own vision, strengths and weaknesses. The code base for OpenZinc was developed from the late 1980s through the mid 1990s. However, even though the code is older it posesses many unique strengths that make its preservation desirable.

The first of these is portability, both among operating systems and compilers. The OpenZinc code can potentially provide GUI interfaces in DOS Text, DOS Graphics, 16 bit Windows, 32 bit Windows, OS/2, Macintosh 68K, Macintosh PPC, Any X Windows system supporting Motif, NextStep and Curses. The framework can also be compiled on virtually any C++ compiler from legacy compilers to the latest releases.

OpenZinc is also both fast and small on all platforms. This is to due the frameworks being based on native constructs in each platform resulting in minimal levels of indirection.

Other advantages of OpenZinc include a visual designer on all platforms and extensive documentation.

In this first release of OpenZinc no attempt has been made to add additional functionality to the legacy Zinc code from which it derives. Changes have been made to allow the framework to be compiled and used with newer compilers while continuing to allow the use of older compilers, and the documentation has been updated to reflect these changes. For an overview of these changes please see the Important Differences page. For a more complete discussion see the OpenZinc 1.0 Addendum in the documentation.

OpenZinc is released under the Lessor General Public License