# CategoryInit

All SDL programs need to initialize the library before starting to work
with it.

Almost everything can simply call [SDL_Init](SDL_Init)() near startup, with
a handful of flags to specify subsystems to touch. These are here to make
sure SDL does not even attempt to touch low-level pieces of the operating
system that you don't intend to use. For example, you might be using SDL
for video and input but chose an external library for audio, and in this
case you would just need to leave off the
[`SDL_INIT_AUDIO`](SDL_INIT_AUDIO) flag to make sure that external library
has complete control.

Most apps, when terminating, should call [SDL_Quit](SDL_Quit)(). This will
clean up (nearly) everything that SDL might have allocated, and crucially,
it'll make sure that the display's resolution is back to what the user
expects if you had previously changed it for your game.

SDL3 apps are strongly encouraged to call
[SDL_SetAppMetadata](SDL_SetAppMetadata)() at startup to fill in details
about the program. This is completely optional, but it helps in small ways
(we can provide an About dialog box for the macOS menu, we can name the app
in the system's audio mixer, etc). Those that want to provide a _lot_ of
information should look at the more-detailed
[SDL_SetAppMetadataProperty](SDL_SetAppMetadataProperty)().

<!-- END CATEGORY DOCUMENTATION -->

## Functions

<!-- DO NOT HAND-EDIT CATEGORY LISTS, THEY ARE AUTOGENERATED AND WILL BE OVERWRITTEN, BASED ON TAGS IN INDIVIDUAL PAGE FOOTERS. EDIT THOSE INSTEAD. -->
<!-- BEGIN CATEGORY LIST: CategoryInit, CategoryAPIFunction -->
- [SDL_GetAppMetadataProperty](SDL_GetAppMetadataProperty)
- [SDL_Init](SDL_Init)
- [SDL_InitSubSystem](SDL_InitSubSystem)
- [SDL_IsMainThread](SDL_IsMainThread)
- [SDL_Quit](SDL_Quit)
- [SDL_QuitSubSystem](SDL_QuitSubSystem)
- [SDL_RunOnMainThread](SDL_RunOnMainThread)
- [SDL_SetAppMetadata](SDL_SetAppMetadata)
- [SDL_SetAppMetadataProperty](SDL_SetAppMetadataProperty)
- [SDL_WasInit](SDL_WasInit)
<!-- END CATEGORY LIST -->

## Datatypes

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- [SDL_AppEvent_func](SDL_AppEvent_func)
- [SDL_AppInit_func](SDL_AppInit_func)
- [SDL_AppIterate_func](SDL_AppIterate_func)
- [SDL_AppQuit_func](SDL_AppQuit_func)
- [SDL_InitFlags](SDL_InitFlags)
- [SDL_MainThreadCallback](SDL_MainThreadCallback)
<!-- END CATEGORY LIST -->

## Structs

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<!-- BEGIN CATEGORY LIST: CategoryInit, CategoryAPIStruct -->
- (none.)
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## Enums

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<!-- BEGIN CATEGORY LIST: CategoryInit, CategoryAPIEnum -->
- [SDL_AppResult](SDL_AppResult)
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## Macros

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<!-- BEGIN CATEGORY LIST: CategoryInit, CategoryAPIMacro -->
- (none.)
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----
[CategoryAPICategory](CategoryAPICategory)

