Is it possible to easily embed ActiveX controls in Java application? Is it worth it. In my next project I should either use existing activex in Java app or have to reimplement everything from scratch, so I'm wondering what will be less hassle.
I don't think there's a way to do this without resorting to a third party library. (Or rolling your own, but you did say "easily".)
SWT (The "Standard Widget Toolkit") contains support for embedding ActiveX controls. SWT is an alternative to Swing, though there is a degree of interoperability between them.
Here's an example of embedding Windows Media Player in an SWT window.
Alternatively there's the Jacob project, though I haven't used that myself.
As for "is it worth it?" Well, I can say from experience that SWT makes it relatively easy, but unless your application can gracefully deal with not having them available, by relying on COM components you are losing the ability to run on multiple platforms that makes Java attractive in the first place.
It really depends on how much you are going to have to re-implement. The Jacob project is quite good (we use it extensively for automation of Excel and Word), but you have to really understand COM to use it, especially the vagaries of the IDispatch interface (very few people who use ActiveX / COM actually understand COM - they just rely on Microsoft's template generation).
If you are just trying to save yourself some typing for some simple DAO objects, you'll probably be better off re-implementing (heck, you could probably take the DTD and write a script to generate Java code for it).
http://www.codeproject.com/KB/cross-platform/javacom.aspx?msg=1776281 might help if you're willing to do stuff by hand...
Doesn't seem quite as flexible though...
Related
I saw some other similar questions on this topic here but they were not very helpful so I a posing this question.
What is the fastest way to convert a reasonably sized, simple web app to a Java desk top based client targeted for pc and mac? Unfortunately I can not share a whole lot of details about the app here due to various reasons. The most complicated UI in the app though is a page that contains a multi level threaded discussions (please see here for an illustrative example of what I am talking about.) The current web app is based on python so I can not re use anything from the server side code (dont think this is an issue)
I have never done any swing or awt or any other Java based thick client GUI work. My thinking is more or less defined by web based applications. I am capable of doing end to end web app development (including backend and decent UI using HTML, CSS and JS) using Java or python. For your answers please focus on Java solutions only.
So here are my questions
What is the best framework or tool I should use? I found some of the following tools on the web as part of my research.
Awt - does not look like this is a good choice.
Swing which I believe is bundled with regular Java SDK/JRE. - This may be my best
bet.
SWT which seems to compliment Swing in some fashion.
Griffon based on an article here. This framework uses Groovy ( I
have no clue about Groovy, btw) Adobe Air flex. Any open source
frameworks?
What are some of the other issues that I need to keep in mind? Some that I would like your comments on are:
How does the fact that it needs to be deployed on the client complicates things? Since we are using Java, I believe this to be a non issue. I am aware of the usual trade offs between a web based app and a desktop app (e.g. ease of deployment and upgrades etc etc.)
How easy is it to create a one click installer and bundle the app and the environment needed - eg. JRE etc?
The product needs to work on Mac and Windows. Does that complicate things in any way (Again, since it is Java I am assuming there are no gotchas but would like to be forewarned if there are any)
What is the framework or technology that may be good to have on the resume as a skill set?
My deadline is a max of 2 months - would that be enough for a reasonably simple web app given that I need to learn all of these technologies? I am just trying to get a sense here - I know it is most likely impossible to give an accurate answer - just assume I am smart enough and can pick up any unfamiliar tech stack fast enough.
Thank you!
GUI toolkit
Given "Mac and Windows", I'd say that settles my recommendation as "Swing" (perhaps with SwingX1).
I agree with your assessment of AWT. It does not support formatted text in any component out-of-the-box. It also lacks trees, tables (and other components) & people with recent experience using it. Note though, that it is also "bundled with regular Java SDK/JRE" just like Swing, it is just that it is older and less enabled than Swing generally.
If anything complements Swing it would be SwingX. SwingX is built on Swing and provides advanced controls that are not available 'out of the box' in the J2SE.
Swing and SWT are mutually incompatible - use one or the other.
I have no experience with Griffon.
Swing is the most used of the options outlined, so for getting help (ignoring other potentially important factors in the decision), it would be a good choice.
Note 1) Add SwingX if they have any groovy components that present threaded conversations easily, but I suspect a JTextPane would suffice.
Deployment
As far as deployment goes, that is a little more tricky than it seems. Many desktop computers do not come with Java as standard. Those that already have it, might have an old version.
To ensure a JRE of the right minimum version to run the app. is available, use the deployJava.js (mentioned, with links, in the JWS page below).
To provide a 'one click' launch experience for the user, look to Java Web Start.
Cross-platform gotcha's
Unfortunately, though Java is x-plat, there are plenty of things that programmers can do that stuff that up. E.G.
Not accounting for the platform default:
File encoding (file.encoding2)
Line break (line.separator2)
File separator (file.separator2)
Coding fixed size ('absolute layout') apps. that will be shown as different sized apps. on other OS.
...
Note 2. That is showing the property to use for each.
Timetable
Obviously I cannot speak for you, but I can tell you that I would have had no chance of going from 'which technology' to a 'deployable app' within two months.
Hope you're more capable than me! ;)
You said that you wanted a Java solution, but be aware that there are plenty of Gui options in Python, and you already have your web application written in Python.
Groovy is a different programming language than Java, but Groovy runs on the JVM. Do you want a Java solution or a JVM solution? I ask because you mention Griffon.
Assuming you want Java, I think your main options are Swing, SWT, JavaFX 2, and Apache Pivot. Oracle has said that they intend for JavaFX to replace Swing as the GUI platform of choice. That said, JavaFX 2 is in its infancy, and only a preview release is available for Mac right now. The upshot of JavaFX and Apache Pivot is that you could use the same code for your web application as your desktop application.
You can try doing so in small steps:
* As a first step you can create an applications with SWT and embed your application in a browser control.
* Then you should move pages and some controls from the web app to the desktop one by one.
In this way you can get a minimal application in hours :)
P.S. If you want an iOS app with this approach it's worth looking at this open source project: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PhoneGap
I need an advice for cross-platform engine/framework for desktop PC application development (Windows, MAC, Linux). I see 3 possibilities, Qt, Java and Adobe AIR.
It must be easy to install (run-time is a drawback, but C++ wrapper and/or installer can solve the issue I think).
It must be fast and have a rich GUI (not 3D game, but definitely some 2D graphics).
The development environment must be easy to establish and the UI development tool must have drag&drop functionality to define application layout.
Target application must have native look and feel. The professional paid support should be available.
All of these criteria are met by Qt, with the exception of "native look and feel". There is no such thing as a cross-platform framework with native feel, especially on OS X, where users are very demanding about the "feel" of applications. If you really want native look and feel, you are best served by writing a shared framework in C++ or C# and then providing native GUI on each platform (you can use MonoMac to provide a native Cocoa UI using C# instead of the native Objective-C, if that's your cup of tea).
That said, we've been very happy with Qt (and the Commercial support) for cross-platform development. Particularly the new OpenGL accelerated 2D Scene API makes animated UIs quite easy. QtCreator is a decent IDE with visual designer support.
Contrary to others, probably due to the fact that I worked on a real-time trading Swing application, I consider Java to be the best answer to your requirements (however, i consider this question as subjective, as previous answers already shows). Let me develop.
It must be easy to install (run-time is a drawback, but C++ wrapper and/or installer can solve the issue I think).
Using Java, you can rely upon Java Web Start, which is, as far as i know, the best solution for easy to use applications : you click a link on the browser, and the application is installed in start menu/desktop and started as soon as it is downloaded. Seems like Adobe AIR offers an equivalent feature, but to my mind Java Web Start integrates, due to the deepness of its ecosystem, far more powerfull distribution solutions (like, as an example, the easy ability to generate the .jnlp file on demand).
It must be fast and have a rich GUI (not 3D game, but definitely some 2D graphics).
Contrary to most popular belief, generating good graphics in Java is possible. Take as an example a look at excellent filthy rich clients companion site of the excellent book.
The development environment must be easy to establish and the UI development tool must have drag&drop functionality to define application layout.
Eclipse is a defacto industry standard for IDEs, and it integrate multiple DnD IDE builders. I would simply take as example the recently liberated Windows Builder Pro.
Target application must have native look and feel. The professional paid support should be available.
Well, Swing default look'n'feel is indeed a little different from system one. however, there are excellent third-party ones, listed here, as an example.
Finally, some examples :
the excellent Palantir Technologies blog list some outstanding Swing applications
Gephi is a rather complete and efficient high-volume graph viewer
My previous work (don't consider it as a masked ad, it's only a way to show some rather solid Swing).
I would not recommend Java for desktop development. I do not care what other say, Java is still slow compared to native languages like C++. I would go with Qt. The IDE has a GUI builder and can be integrated into Eclipse or Visual Studio.
Here's a helpful resource:
http://qt.nokia.com/products/
Have a look at Appcelerator Titanium: it basically wraps a web app in a browser. You can have anything you want in a GUI using wen tech, but it looks like an ap[p.
Strangely, nobody mentioned Real Studio (now Xojo) which does meet all your requirements:
It is easy to install and does not require a separate run-time
It compiles to native code so is reasonably fast
It has a good UI library that is native for each platform
The IDE is very nice with drag and drop UI designers
Target applications are fully native and use native controls
First of have to mention http://wxwidgets.org/ , one of the most popular X-platoform frameoworks. Depending on the complexity of your application and the requirements to the "nativeness", a cross-platform framework may work for you. The x-platform applications built with framework usually feel a bit "alien", especially on the Mac, but workable. A good example is http://taskcoach.org/.
If your users are tolerant to hearty download sizes, hefty memory requirements and a bit of non-native look-and-feel then plain Java, eclipse RCP or NetBeans platform can work for you. You may save quite a bit of development time going this route.
However I am not aware of cross-platform framework that satisfies all your requirements.
If you need to get to a production-level application, the strategy that I have seen worked best was to stay native but split the UI-dependent code into cross-platform (e.g. C++ business logic) and UI. This way, you will use native interface building tools (each platform has something good there). Depending on the complexity and "finish" requirements of your application you may actually save time going this route.
A great overview of the "Native X-Platform" process can be found in this answer by Chris Hanson.
I'm pretty much a beginner at programming and I know only basics of VB, Java, and C++ as well. Lately, I was trying to work on my Java by building some very simple desktop apps but I found swing and layout managers to be very frustrating. I know how to make them work and I've done them before (not saying I'm good at them) but doing GUI stuff just makes me want to drop the whole project. I kinda like the way it's done with VB or C#.
Are there any other aspects of Java or Java technologies that I can work on instead of GUI stuff? Or does this mean that maybe I should just go for C# if I'm in to developing some desktop apps?
Thank you!
Sure, start with the server side stuff first.
GUI need not mean Swing. If you're doing web apps, perhaps JSPs using JSTL or Flex will be easier for you.
If you develop web services you can use any UI technology you like, as long as you can make a request with an appropriate client. SOAP or REST, you can decouple the back end from the UI.
I think you can start with programming some command line programs. Yes, they maybe less attractive compared to GUI's, but they're easier to understand and get you the stuffs before you move on to the next stage. I personally don't recommend server side programming for starters because there are way too many stuffs to care about than a simple command line program. My next recommendation would be webapps, if you're interested. Because, believe it or not, it is still the most robust language you can trust on building responsive and complicated webapps.
IntelliJ Idea GUI builder is really good at this.
But exactly for the same reason you fell frustrated Java is best used on the server side.
Implementing webapps, servers, frameworks. There are plenty of tools to play with.
I think it is just matter of patience. Since you come from languages that don't do very well without IDE it is a bit shocking.
Keep trying
As duffymo said you have plenty alternatives to swing such as JSP.
You can also try a different free swing editor such as Form Layout maker, Visual Editor Eclipse or the one included in netbeans (don't know each one you used).
Also you can try this SwiXML - XML representation of GUI. (never used this one, but seems to be quite simple to use).
If you develop AMF/AMF3 or Webservices you can develop your interface in many different technologies...
After spending a lot of time and code on programming in Swing, I thought this can't be state-of-the-art Java GUI building. After not finding a user-friendly visual gui bilder for eclipse I stumbled upon declarative GUI building with XML UI toolkits... and I thought: This must be it! I think it's the right way to go, easy and also close to web-programming.
But after looking around in the web and on SO, I got the impression that it is not very common! Although there are many implementations and APIs, it seems like most of them are kind of dead and had no updates in the last 5 years..
So I wonder: Is my feeling right, that XML is not very widespread for java GUIs? And if so - what are the reasons? Maybe it couldn't become accepted or it has some major drawbacks or people are doing everything in the web instead with fatclients or there are better alternatives, maybe javafx?
I just need to know if it is worth spending time in that area or better look for alternate ways. As I dont read developer magazines I just don't know what the trends in gui building are and which technologies are believed to have a future. But I can't imagine that people still spend so much time on writing nasty swing (or swt) apps.
There new fresh and interesting approach - it uses YAML. Check it out at http://code.google.com/p/javabuilders/
Sun's answer to that seems to be JavaFX.
It has a declarative language for specifying the GUI and there will be builder apps as well.
There is some prototype work going on for e4 (Eclipse 4), which would allow building a GUI by editing an Ecore model and customizing it via CSS.
See this blog post for some details and instructions to try it out yourself.
Five to ten years ago XML was very popular. Although fine to provide some kind of standardisation for transferring data between heterogeneous systems, it's not suitable for programming. It always starts with the easy stuff, and lets declare everything. But any real system requires code. XML then falls down. There is also the problem that XML is a bad syntax for humans, and even languages like Java are easier to read.
On the other hand, there is clearly a need for the rails of GUIs. Naked Objects is the closest reasonable attempt I have seen.
I came to the same conclusions as you about the declarative frameworks out there. It is not worth learning a new GUI syntax unless it's widely supported. XUL as an interface language is widespread, but there is no java rendering framework for it. I'd say HTML+CSS+Javascript and a Servlet container is the best Java platform for GUIs today, but sadly I haven't found a platform independent way to display web pages like a desktop application.
If you use Eclipse, you can now use WindowBuilder to help you in creating Swing apps in a user-friendly visual GUI builder. It's now available as a free download, and Google has donated the Swing GUI builder framework to the Eclipse Foundation.
I'd second Thilos suggestion with javaFX.
Additionally the trend is pointing to webapps, so I think that in the long run javaFX and web based UIs will catch up to swing+swt GUIs.
I do all my swing stuff by hand and none of my application is nasty. If you do not know how to create usable and good looking UI there is no technology to help you.
The answer is surely not going to be XML. What problem are you trying to solve? You want to have reusable building blocks, and a compact way of describing them. I don't see XML helping you there.
[edit] Creating a java code equivalent of XUL would be an immense improvement on XUL.
XML makes it really, really hard to do good separation of concerns and once and only once. It is however perfect for the mongolian horde approach. You need a layer on top of swing, it only provides the building blocks.
I want to open and manipulate Excel files with ActiveX. I've had success with Python's Win32 Extensions and Groovy's Scriptom libraries on other projects but need to do this is pure Java this time if possible.
I've tried the Jacob Java COM Bridge but that doesn't seem as straightforward or simple to use, and I couldn't get it to retrieve cell values (even though this is the library underlying Scriptom). Are there alternatives?
Jacob is really the tool for the job here. I recommend that you take the time to learn a bit about how COM and ActiveX work, and I think you'll find that it's easier to use. COM is quite an accomplishment, but it's hard. Wrappers like VB make it seem easy (For the limited use that they work for), but it is not at all easy. I have a great book on learning COM, but don't have the name handy right now...
You want to learn about the IDispatch interface (this is what most of Excel's COM interface is developed around). It's a nasty, nasty interface (one of those viral things that you can do so much with it that it becomes impossible to tell what is actually happening) - but learning it is key.
If you are having issues in just one area (i.e. getting a value from a cell), you could grab the source for Scriptom and see what they do (open source, after all!).
Another suggestion is to try to implement some test cases of your code in VBA and make sure that you are correctly thinking through all the return values. When we were doing Excel automation in one of our Java apps, we implemented the general algorithm from Word's VBA, worked through the problem cases, etc... After that, transferring over to Jacob was pretty straightforward.
K
how about http://www.nevaobject.com/_docs/_java2com/java2com.htm -- this is commercial but works better.
Have you looked at JExcelAPI? Instead of using ActiveX this is a Java library which directly reads and writes Excel files.
Not an exact answer to your questions but it might solve the problem just as well, especially if you're looking for a pure Java solution.
There's also JIntegra, which does a similar thing. Also commercial.
And there's JNIWrapper, which does a similar thing. again, also commercial.