SDL stands for Simple DirectMedia Layer, a set of libraries developed in C language and that can provide certain basic functions to perform 2D drawing operations, sound effect management, and image management. The news that was jumping a few days ago is that Ryan Gordon (aka Icculus) has obtained an epic MegaGrant to further improve SDL, which may help future next-generation APIs.
Thanks to SDL, the multiplatform video game development, to make it easier for developers, making it easier for more titles to come to Linux. And it is that this set of libraries allow low-level access to audio hardware, keyboard, mouse, joysticks, and also graphics. Therefore, it can be used by software to emulate, for video playback, audio, and video game engines.
Ryan gordon He is one of the people responsible for the development of SDL, and also the architect of video game ports for Linux and macOS, as well as other platforms, being very active in recent years. Following the announcement he made on Patreon about his intentions, he has made it clear that SDL still has a lot to say.
The problem so far is that the Vulkan API It is much more modern, promising and powerful than OpenGL, however this API was more complicated and there were problems with SDL. Now what Ryzen Gordon has done is to facilitate the work with Vulkan, although they will also continue working with others such as Direct3D, Metal, etc. And while there will be some limitations, it will make next-gen APIs more accessible to all non-AAA engine developers.
Ultimately, the SDL enhancement will come to make development work easier, and in a more transparent way for developers, so that they can make their games without much complication.
The Vala compiler makes working with SDL very easy for beginners.