Leo Izen (12023-05-01):
> > Yes, strings are a terrible API, but our project is not only a set of
> > libraries, it is also a set of command-line tools, and command-line
> > tools work with strings and nothing else.
> This is a good argument for putting the code in fftools/ and not libavutil,
> fwiw.

This is not wrong. But I realize now my argument was widely incomplete.
GUI applications not of our own still need text to communicate with
users about things that do not have their specific widget, for example.

The avlibraries must not only perform work for applications, they also
must help applications communicate with users about that work, and that
is done with text.

See there for a more complete wording:
http://ffmpeg.org/pipermail/ffmpeg-devel/2023-May/309077.html

Regards,

-- 
  Nicolas George