tracel-ai/burn

Burn-RL examples not compiled because of SDL dependency

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#4,683 opened on Mar 27, 2026

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Description

Feature description

Bring back the RL examples from the burn-rl crate, disabled by default from builds here https://github.com/tracel-ai/burn/blob/ed72d2b125a364aff18aed2a53396c128e01cb42/Cargo.toml#L19

This is disabled because of the outdated dependency https://github.com/MathisWellmann/gym-rs/pull/14

This does not build on modern linux e.g. arch linux, where CMAKE and SDL included by sdl-sys are very out of date and do not compile.

Feature motivation

Build on RL example with more implementations e.g. https://github.com/yunjhongwu/burn-rl-examples

(Optional) Suggest a Solution

Remove rendering by removing sdl feature, e.g. https://github.com/yunjhongwu/burn-rl-examples/issues/54

or change dependency to modern fork e.g. https://github.com/MathisWellmann/gym-rs/pull/14

I have done this in a fork https://github.com/tracel-ai/burn/compare/main...johnny-smitherson:burn:rl-examples-fix

Contributor guide

Research direction
Examine the Cargo.toml lines disabling burn rl examples and the outdated gym rs dependency. Consider removing the SDL feature or updating to a modern fork.
Tech stack
rust
Domain
machine learning
Issue type
Bug
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Active
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Mostly clear
Prerequisites
Rust
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
70