As a general point, I prefer using usual C++ std::string (they all are UTF8 encoded), or C const char* string (UTF8). The reason is more political than technical: I am afraid that in 2021, funding agencies prefer Web interfaces to Qt ones (on desktops or laptops) for software having several human users at once.
Also, RefPerSys being today a research project, efficiency is not a priority, and losing CPU time in lots of std::string to QString conversion (and vice versa) is now (july 2021) acceptable.
Our long term vision is to generate C++ code (from our higher-level declarative formalism, expert system like). Ideally, like Pitrat explains in his Artificial Beings: the Conscience of a Conscious Machine book (ISBN 978-1848211018), we want to generate all the C++ code of RefPerSys. Of course, that is an ambitious goal, and we are very far from it. Sadly, in july 2021, we have very few generated C++ lines. BTW, Jacques Pitrat was the director of my PhD jury, defended in Paris in 1990.
The local variable obshowstring is declared as std::string obshowstring in file tempgui-qrps.cc, for commit 7fa10ba9cd62 in line 331
Regards, and thanks for your help.
Basile Starynkevitch - near Paris in France
PS. Off-topic: I am interested in any HorizonEurope submission which could fund RefPerSys. The RefPerSys website mentions some potential calls (e.g. HORIZON-CL2-DEMOCRACY-2022-01-01, HORIZON-CL2-DEMOCRACY-2022-01-05, HORIZON-CL2-DEMOCRACY-2022-01-06, HORIZON-CL2-HERITAGE-2022-01-03, HORIZON-CL2-HERITAGE-2022-01-04, HORIZON-CL2-HERITAGE-2022-01-06, HORIZON-HLTH-2021-STAYHLTH-01-02, HORIZON-HLTH-2022-STAYHLTH-01-01, HORIZON-HLTH-2022-STAYHLTH-01-04, HORIZON-HLTH-2022-STAYHLTH-02-01 but there could be others.
Contact me then by email to both basile@starynkevitch.net (personal email) and to basile.starynkevitch@cea.fr (professional email at CEA LIST)