Thinlet is a GUI toolkit, implemented as a single Java class, which parses the XML defeinition of widget hierarchy and properties of the GUI, handles user interaction, and calls business logic.
Thinlet is a GUI toolkit, a single Java class, parses the hierarchy and properties of the GUI, handles user interaction, and calls business logic. Separates the graphic presentation (described in an XML file) and the application methods (written as Java code).
SwiXML is Wolf Paulus’ XML User Interface languge (XUI or XUL) which uses the regularity of the Java Swing GUI libraries to allow very lightweight implementation: XML elements are used for JComponents, XML attributes are used for properties (e.g. <frame size="5"/> would be JFrame.setSize(5)), and there is provision for layout managers, ids, custom JComponents and so on. Substance is Kiril Grouchnikov’s Look and Feel library for Swing components, which allows various subtle and lurid modern effects: the latest release, version 5, has just come out. Kiril has also written a good series of articles, available at his blog, on what he has learned about running a successful responsive open source project.
Despite the widespread use of Swing for GUI development, this API can be far too complex for many simpler tasks. A nifty little tool called Thinlet, defines the GUI in an XML file, helping to solve this problem.