Java Look and Feel Design Guidelines, 2/e (Paperback)

"Great book! Fills a void in the Java world. Necessary reading for all Java developers, designers, and interface designers."
--Theo Mandel, Ph.D., author of The Elements of User Interface Design

The adoption of the Java Look and Feel Design Guidelines has contributed to a consistent user interface that gives Java applications a recognizable, uniform design. However, the distinctions between interface designers and developers in today's Internet application development environment are increasingly blurred. Most developers also design applications, though few are solely dedicated to interface design tasks. With this situation in mind, the second edition of this award-winning book includes:

• New, updated, and expanded guidelines
• A companion CD-ROM with code samples and a large collection of graphics designed for use with Java Foundation Classes (JFC) components
• A comprehensive list of terms translated into nine languages

The Java Look and Feel Design Guidelines, Second Editioncontinues to be an invaluable resource for creating cross-platform Java applications and applets with JFC components. The book covers design concepts underlying the Java look and feel and techniques for managing cross-platform delivery, applets, accessibility, and internationalization. It introduces the visual design and behavior provided with the Java look and feel and provides instruction in the design of application graphics. Reference chapters discuss windows, dialog boxes, menus, toolbars, basic controls, text components, tables, and tree components.

 

Table of Contents

Preface.

I. OVERVIEW.

1. The Java Look and Feel.

Fundamentals of the Java Look and Feel.

Visual Tour of the Java Look and Feel.

MetalEdit Application.

Retirement Savings Calculator Applet.

2. The Java Foundation Classes.

Java 2 Software Development Kit.

Java Foundation Classes.

Support for Accessibility.

Support for Internationalization.

User Interface Components of the Java Foundation Classes.

Pluggable Look and Feel Architecture.

Example Model and Interfaces.

Client Properties.

Major JFC User Interface Components.

Look and Feel Options.

Java Look and Feel the Recommended Design.

Alternative Approaches.

Supplied Designs.

3. Design Considerations.

Choosing an Application or an Applet.

Distribution.

Security Issues.

Placement of Applets.

Designing for Accessibility.

Benefits of Accessibility.

Accessible Design.

Planning for Internationalization and Localization.

Benefits of Global Planning.

Global Design.

II. FUNDAMENTAL JAVA APPLICATION DESIGN.

4. Visual Design.

Themes.

Colors.

Fonts.

Layout and Visual Alignment.

Design Grids.

Text Layout.

Between-Component Spacing Guidelines.

Spacing Guidelines for Specific JFC Components.

Text in the Interface.

Headline Capitalization in English.

Sentence Capitalization in English.

5. Application Graphics.

Working with Cross-Platform Color.

Working with Available Colors.

Choosing Graphic File Formats.

Choosing Colors.

Maximizing Color Quality.

Categorizing Application Graphics.

Designing Icons.

Working with Icon Styles.

Drawing Icons.

Designing Button Graphics.

Using Button Graphic Styles.

Producing the Flush 3D Effect.

Working with Button Borders.

Determining the Primary Drawing Area.

Drawing the Button Graphic.

Using Badges in Button Graphics.

Menu Indicators.

New Object Indicators.

Add Object Indicators.

Properties Indicators.

Combining Indicators.

Designing Symbols.

Designing Graphics for Corporate and Product Identity.

Designing Splash Screens.

Designing Login Splash Screens.

Designing about Boxes.

6. Behavior.

Mouse Operations.

Pointer Feedback.

Mouse-over Feedback.

Clicking and Selecting Objects.

Displaying Contextual Menus.

Drag-and-Drop Operations.

Typical Drag and Drop.

Pointer and Destination Feedback.

Keyboard Operations.

Keyboard Focus.

Keyboard Navigation and Activation.

Keyboard Shortcuts.

Mnemonics.

Operation Feedback.

Progress Animation.

Status Animation.

Design for Smooth Interaction.

Initial Focus.

Navigation.

Password Field.

Status and Error Messages.

Text Selection and Filled Text Fields.

III. THE COMPONENTS OF THE JAVA FOUNDATION CLASSES.

7. Windows and Panes.

Anatomy of a Primary Window.

Constructing Windows.

Primary Windows.

Secondary Windows.

Plain Windows.

Utility Windows.

Organizing the Contents of Windows.

Panels.

Scroll Panes.

Tabbed Panes.

Split Panes.

Working with Multiple Document Interfaces.

Internal Windows.

Internal Utility Windows.

Window Titles.

Title Text in Primary Windows.

Title Text in Secondary Windows.

Title Text in Internal Windows.

8. Dialog Boxes and Alert Boxes.

Modal and Modeless Dialog Boxes.

Dialog Box Design.

Tab Traversal Order.

Command Buttons in Dialog Boxes.

Single and Multiple Use Dialog Boxes.

Default Command Buttons.

Common Dialog Boxes.

Find Dialog Boxes.

Login Dialog Boxes.

Preferences Dialog Boxes.

Progress Dialog Boxes.

Color Choosers.

Alert Boxes.

Info Alert Boxes.

Warning Alert Boxes.

Error Alert Boxes.

Question Alert Boxes.

9. Menus and Toolbars.

Menu Elements.

Menu Bars.

Drop-down Menus.

Submenus.

Menu Items.

Separators.

Menu Item Graphics.

Checkbox Menu Items.

Radio Button Menu Items.

Common Menus.

Typical File Menu.

Typical Edit Menu.

Typical Format Menu.

Sample View Menu.

Typical Help Menu.

Contextual Menus.

Toolbars.

Toolbar Placement.

Draggable Toolbars.

Toolbar Buttons.

Tool Tips.

10. Basic Controls.

Command Buttons.

Default Command Buttons.

Combining Graphics with Text in Command Buttons.

Using Ellipses in Command Buttons.

Toggle Buttons.

Independent Choice.

Exclusive Choice.

Checkboxes.

Radio Buttons.

List Boxes.

Scrolling.

Selection/Choice Models for List Components.

Combo Boxes.

Noneditable Combo Boxes.

Editable Combo Boxes.

Sliders.

11. Text Components.

Labels.

Labels That Identify Controls.

Labels That Communicate Status and Other Information.

Text Fields.

Noneditable Text Fields.

Editable Text Fields.

Password Fields.

Text Areas.

Editor Panes.

Default Editor Kit.

Styled Text Editor Kit.

RTF Editor Kit.

HTML Editor Kit.

12. Selectable Lists, Tables, and Tree Components.

Selectable Lists.

Example 1: Selectable Lists and Associated Tables.

Example 2: Selectable Lists and Associated Text Fields.

Tables.

Table Appearance.

Table Scrolling.

Column Reordering.

Column Resizing.

Row Sorting.

Selection Models for Tables.

Tree Components.

Lines in Tree Components.

Graphics in Tree Components.

Editing in Tree Components.

Appendix A: Keyboard Shortcuts, Mnemonics, and Operations.

Common Keyboard Shortcuts.

Common Mnemonics.

Checkboxes.

Combo Boxes.

Command Buttons.

Backing Windows and Internal Windows.

Secondary Windows.

HTML Editor Kits.

List Components.

Menus.

Radio Buttons.

Scrollbars.

Sliders.

Split Panes.

Tabbed Panes.

Tables.

Text Areas and Default and Styled Text Editor Kits.

Text Fields.

Toggle Buttons.

Tool Tips.

Toolbars.

Tree Components.

Appendix B: Graphics Repository.

General Graphics.

Adding Objects.

Saving Edits or Checkpoints.

Stopping a Task.

Updating the Screen Display.

Changing Magnification Levels.

Specifying Preferences and Properties.

Printing.

Displaying and Retrieving Previously Visited Locations.

Creating and Sending Electronic Mail.

Aligning Objects.

Justifying Objects.

Searching.

Editing Objects and Data.

Importing and Exporting Objects.

Providing Help and Information.

Navigation.

Vertical Traversal.

Horizontal Traversal.

Returning to an Initial Location.

Table Graphics.

Column Operations.

Row Operations.

Text.

Text Alignment and Justification.

Type Style Graphics.

Media.

Creating a Movie.

Moving Through Time-Based Media.

Graphics for Development.

Creating and Deploying Applications and Applets.

Creating and Adding Beans and Enterprise Beans.

Creating Hosts and Servers.

Creating and Adding Java Archive Files.

Creating and Adding Web Archive Files and Web Components.

Appendix C: Localization Word Lists.

European Languages.

Asian Languages.

Appendix D: Switching Look and Feel Designs.

Pitfalls of User-Controlled Switching.

Guidelines for Switching Look and Feel Designs.

How to Present the Choice.

Nomenclature.

Glossary.

Index.