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Fulcrum vs silx

A side-by-side editorial comparison of Fulcrum and silx — release velocity, themes, recent moves, and the top alternatives to consider.

Fulcrum vs silx: at a glance

FeatureFulcrumsilx
SectorAnalyticsAnalytics
Velocity score6.32.5
Sparks · 30d00
Top themesfield-data-collection, esri-arcgis, offline-maps, mobile-releasessynchrotron, qt, hdf5, scientific plotting
Last editorial update15h ago1h ago
WebsiteVisit →

What is Fulcrum?

Fulcrum is consolidating on Esri, with Google Maps gone September 1

The mapping stack is the whole story right now: ArcGIS SDK 300.0.0 on iOS, the latest ArcGIS and deck.gl on web, and a hard cutover date after which any organization still defaulting to Google Maps is switched to Esri automatically. The mobile releases in this window are almost entirely map and location fixes — basemap loading, offline symbol styling, location resolution that blocked saves. On-device inference quietly changed format, dropping ONNX.

Read the full Fulcrum trajectory →

What is silx?

silx 3.0 moved its default Qt binding to PySide6 — a migration for everyone embedding it.

silx releases a couple of times a year and reached 3.0.0 in April 2026, which raised the Python floor to 3.10 and switched the default Qt binding to PySide6. The same release reworked the viewer's data views: 3D scatter support, dedicated RGB(A) image views, the composite ImageView split into Plot2dView and ComplexImageView, and NXdata stacks displayed as images. 3.1.0 has since added asinh axis scaling, the twilight colormaps, and dark-theme icons.

Read the full silx trajectory →

Fulcrum vs silx: editorial side-by-side

F
Fulcrum
ANALYTICS
6.3

Fulcrum is consolidating on Esri, with Google Maps gone September 1

◆ Current state

The mapping stack is the whole story right now: ArcGIS SDK 300.0.0 on iOS, the latest ArcGIS and deck.gl on web, and a hard cutover date after which any organization still defaulting to Google Maps is switched to Esri automatically. The mobile releases in this window are almost entirely map and location fixes — basemap loading, offline symbol styling, location resolution that blocked saves. On-device inference quietly changed format, dropping ONNX.

◆ Where it's heading

One platform bet runs through everything: Esri as the single map engine, with Google's satellite, hybrid, and street imagery retained as basemap options so the migration costs users imagery choice, not capability. The current release cadence is stabilization work paying down that migration rather than new ground.

◆ Prediction

Expect map and location fixes to keep dominating releases through the September 1 cutover, with the Esri-only capabilities already listed — snapping, ArcGIS Feature Service connectivity, offline basemaps — becoming the default surface rather than the alternative one.

S
silx
ANALYTICS
2.5

silx 3.0 moved its default Qt binding to PySide6 — a migration for everyone embedding it.

◆ Current state

silx releases a couple of times a year and reached 3.0.0 in April 2026, which raised the Python floor to 3.10 and switched the default Qt binding to PySide6. The same release reworked the viewer's data views: 3D scatter support, dedicated RGB(A) image views, the composite ImageView split into Plot2dView and ComplexImageView, and NXdata stacks displayed as images. 3.1.0 has since added asinh axis scaling, the twilight colormaps, and dark-theme icons.

◆ Where it's heading

The project is doing a generational refresh of its GUI layer: modern Qt binding, modules broken out of the composite widgets that had accumulated responsibilities, and the theming work that a desktop application needs to look current. Underneath, the recurring fixes are about HDF5 behavior in real facility environments — file locking, NFS refresh, Windows display paths — which is where a synchrotron toolkit actually gets stressed. Feature growth is concentrated in silx view rather than the library API.

◆ Prediction

Expect the 3.1.x line to keep filling in plotting options and theming, with the PySide6 default flushing out binding-specific bugs from downstream applications over the next few releases.

Alternatives to Fulcrum and silx

Other Analytics products tracked by Sparkpulse, ranked by recent ship velocity. Each card links to a full editorial trajectory and lets you pivot into a head-to-head comparison with either Fulcrum or silx.

See all Fulcrum alternatives → · See all silx alternatives →

Recent activity from Fulcrum and silx

Latest ship moves from both products, interleaved chronologically. ⚡ = editorial spark.

  1. 22h agoFulcrumiOS fix for slow location resolution blocking saves
  2. 2d agosilx3.1.0: asinh axis scaling, twilight colormaps, dark-theme icons
  3. 5d agoFulcrumMap engine updated to the latest ArcGIS and deck.gl
  4. 6d agoFulcrumAndroid stability fixes for ArcGIS location and signatures
  5. 6d agoFulcrumiOS basemap loading and map-centering fixes
  6. 7d agoFulcrumArcGIS SDK 300.0.0 lands; ONNX inference support removed
  7. 7d agoFulcrumOffline ArcGIS layers keep custom symbols and labels
  8. 3mo agosilx3.0.1: 2026/05/07
  9. 3mo agosilx3.0.0: PySide6 becomes the default Qt binding, Python 3.10 required
  10. 3mo agosilx3.0.0rc1: release candidate for the PySide6 migration
  11. 1y agosilx2.2.2: 2025/04/07
  12. 1y agosilx2.2.0b0: HSDS URL support and a multi-curve comparison window

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Fulcrum and silx?

They serve adjacent needs but don't currently overlap on shipped themes. Fulcrum is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. See the at-a-glance table above for a side-by-side breakdown of velocity, recent sparks, and editorial themes.

Is Fulcrum better than silx?

Sparkpulse doesn't pick a winner — we score release velocity, not feature parity. Fulcrum is currently shipping more aggressively (velocity 6.3 vs 2.5), with 0 editorial sparks in the last 30 days against 0. For your specific use case, the alternatives sections above list other Analytics products to evaluate alongside.

What are the best alternatives to Fulcrum?

Top Fulcrum alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "Fulcrum alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/fulcrum for the full list with editorial commentary on each.

What are the best alternatives to silx?

Top silx alternatives in Analytics are ranked by recent ship velocity. Browse the "silx alternatives" section above for the current picks, or visit /alternatives/silx for the full list with editorial commentary on each.