Matthew Dodd

Interacting with software can be extremely annoying or incredibly exciting ­ depending on the user interface. While one GUI can leave you hopelessly confused and deny the execution of simple tasks because you can't find the right button, another GUI can draw you in with its appealing and conclusive features, making the implementation of even complex procedures a walk in the park. For a long time, the development of graphically advanced user interfaces was something only desktop software developers could do, as Java simply lacked the respective toolsets. AWT and later Swing have tried to fill the gap, but are still greatly limited compared to Microsoft's Windows OS or Apple's Mac OS X. With the growing range of end-user devices that directly support Java, it's increasingly becoming the one true platform-independent environment every developer has been waiting for ­... (more)