Re: SWT or Swing GUI?

[ktm <ktm@speakeasy.net>]

Acceptable performance can be had from Swing; I would take a much wider and
long-term view of the issues if I were a product manager. 

1. Must you use java on the client?  Personally, I think Delphi kicks 
the stuffing out of java on the desktop.  BTW, I am actively developing
both swing and kylix (delphi on linux) clients.
Advantage: none

2. Will your ever need your production team to "swarm" on a problem?  By 
"swarm" I mean
temporarily throwing most or all of your resources at a single issue or 
objective, with the intention of getting
quick resolution.  "Swarmable" teams have deep experience, excellent 
communication,  and a common view of
best practices. 

I would guess that there are more experienced swing developers than SWT 
developers.  Advantage: swing
There are no best practices for java rich clients, especially J2EE 
clients. Advantage: none
New technologies impede communication, for it takes time to get a 
shareable lexicon established.  Advantage: swing


Good luck.
Kit

Lee Chalupa wrote:

> Hello.
>
> I need to start development of a thick client for an application and I 
> am debating whether to use SWT or Swing.  I presently use swing in the 
> MagicDraw UML product and I use SWT in Eclipse so I have some 
> significant experience as a user in each.
>
> I'm very pleased with the MagicDraw application and have no complaints 
> with it's interface.  Though I do appreciate what people describe as 
> "spongy" swing controls.  This is a noticable problem but not a 
> significant problem for me in the MagicDraw swing application but I 
> can't speak for other users.
>
> My application will be competing against other vendor's gui products 
> that are best of breed so I really want to avoid any potential 
> performance issues with the gui from the start. In this case, it's not 
> so much an issue of Swing versus SWT it's one of these products versus 
> VB or Delphi.
>
> The application is designed for use in a small office so we will have 
> the ability to control the deployment of the application thus using 
> add-ons to the JDK like SWT would not be an issue.
>
> As long as SWT still provides platform independence, what is the 
> downside of using SWT?  One maybe the lack of gui tools?  One maybe 
> the risk that Sun will improve swing in the future and eliminate the 
> benefits SWT provides making the need obsolete?  One maybe lack of 
> educational materials?  One maybe the limited variety of widgets 
> offered in the toolkit.
>
> I'm currently reading information on various web sites.
>
> Does anyone have any other advice on managing this issue?
>
> Thanks
>
> lee
>