Loupe – modern GNOME image viewer with sandboxed decoding

Loupe is an image viewer developed for the GNOME desktop environment. It combines a clean interface with modern image rendering technology, making it suitable for viewing photographs, graphics and other image files without the complexity of a photo management application.

The application is built using Rust, GTK4 and Libadwaita. It uses glycin to decode images in isolated processes, separating potentially untrusted image data from the main application. This architecture is particularly useful because image files can contain malformed or malicious content that exploits weaknesses in decoders.

Loupe replaced Eye of GNOME as GNOME’s default image viewing application. Its interface follows the GNOME Human Interface Guidelines, with gestures and controls designed to work across conventional desktops and touchscreen devices.

This is free and open source software.

Key Features

• GPU-accelerated rendering – displays images efficiently using hardware acceleration.
• Sandboxed decoding – isolates image loading from the main application through glycin.
• Extensible format support – uses additional image loaders to support different file formats.
• SVG rendering – displays vector images with tiled rendering for smooth navigation.
• Touchpad gestures – supports pinch-to-zoom and other natural navigation gestures.
• Touchscreen support – provides gesture-based controls for compatible displays.
• Image metadata – displays useful information about the currently selected image.
• Image navigation – browse other images in the same directory.
• Keyboard shortcuts – control common viewing operations without relying on the mouse.
• Desktop integration – set images as the desktop background.
• Responsive interface – adapts its controls and layout to different window sizes.

Website: gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/loupe
Support:
Developer: The Loupe Team
License: GNU General Public License v3.0

Loupe is written in Rust. Learn Rust with our recommended free books and free tutorials

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