Solitude refers to the joy of being alone.

Here’s a guide on creating a basic Chromium-based browser using the Chromium Embedded Framework (CEF). This example sets up a simple browser with basic functionality.

Requirements
Install a C++ development environment (e.g., Visual Studio, CMake).
Download Chromium or CEF SDK.
Ensure necessary dependencies like Git, Python3, and Ninja are installed.
Project Structure

/MyBrowser
    |-- CMakeLists.txt
    |-- main.cpp
    |-- simple_handler.cpp
    |-- simple_handler.h

1. CMakeLists.txt

cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 3.10)
project(MyBrowser)

# Set C++ standard
set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)

# CEF root directory
set(CEF_ROOT "path/to/cef_binary")

# Add CEF as a subdirectory
add_subdirectory(${CEF_ROOT} cef_target_dir)

# Add source files
add_executable(MyBrowser main.cpp simple_handler.cpp)

# Link CEF libraries
target_link_libraries(MyBrowser libcef_lib cef_sandbox_lib)

2. main.cpp
This is the entry point of the application. It initializes CEF, creates a browser window, and runs the CEF message loop.

#include "include/cef_app.h"
#include "simple_handler.h"

int main(int argc, char* argv[]) {
    // CEF main arguments
    CefMainArgs main_args(argc, argv);

    // Implement a custom CEF app
    CefRefPtr<CefApp> app;

    // Execute sub-processes
    int exit_code = CefExecuteProcess(main_args, app, nullptr);
    if (exit_code >= 0) {
        return exit_code;
    }

    // CEF initialization settings
    CefSettings settings;
    settings.no_sandbox = true;

    // Initialize CEF
    CefInitialize(main_args, settings, app, nullptr);

    // Create the main browser window
    CefRefPtr<SimpleHandler> handler(new SimpleHandler());
    CefWindowInfo window_info;
    CefBrowserSettings browser_settings;

    // Create a browser instance
    CefBrowserHost::CreateBrowser(window_info, handler, "https://www.google.com", browser_settings, nullptr, nullptr);

    // Run the CEF message loop
    CefRunMessageLoop();

    // Shutdown CEF
    CefShutdown();
    return 0;
}

3. simple_handler.h
This file defines a handler class to manage browser events.

#ifndef SIMPLE_HANDLER_H_
#define SIMPLE_HANDLER_H_

#include "include/cef_client.h"

class SimpleHandler : public CefClient, public CefLifeSpanHandler {
public:
    SimpleHandler() = default;
    ~SimpleHandler() override = default;

    CefRefPtr<CefLifeSpanHandler> GetLifeSpanHandler() override {
        return this;
    }

    void OnAfterCreated(CefRefPtr<CefBrowser> browser) override {
        CEF_REQUIRE_UI_THREAD();
        browser_list_.push_back(browser);
    }

    void OnBeforeClose(CefRefPtr<CefBrowser> browser) override {
        CEF_REQUIRE_UI_THREAD();
        browser_list_.remove(browser);
        if (browser_list_.empty()) {
            CefQuitMessageLoop();
        }
    }

private:
    std::list<CefRefPtr<CefBrowser>> browser_list_;

    IMPLEMENT_REFCOUNTING(SimpleHandler);
};

#endif  // SIMPLE_HANDLER_H_

4. simple_handler.cpp
This file provides implementations for SimpleHandler.

#include "simple_handler.h"
#include "include/cef_browser.h"

void SimpleHandler::OnAfterCreated(CefRefPtr<CefBrowser> browser) {
    CefClient::OnAfterCreated(browser);
}

How to Run
1.Download the CEF SDK: Obtain the latest SDK from the CEF website.
2.Configure the project path: Replace CEF_ROOT in the CMakeLists.txt file with the path to your CEF installation.
3.Build the project:

mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
cmake --build .

4.Run the browser: Execute the generated binary.
How to Extend
1.Multi-Tab Support: Manage multiple CefBrowser instances in the SimpleHandler class.
2.Custom UI: Integrate a GUI framework like Qt or wxWidgets for a more polished interface.
3.Plugins and Extensions: Enable Chromium features for extensions or custom plugins.
4.Custom Features: Add APIs for file access, scripting, or other specific functionalities.
This setup provides a minimal browser framework.