XUI (pronounced Zoo'ey) is an Open Source, Rich Internet Application (RIA) framework for building applications in Java and XML. XUI supports Swing, AWT, SWT and HTML widget sets. The framework has been developed by Xoetrope, together with some excellent contributions from the Open Source community.

The framework aims to reduce the amount of coding needed to build applications. More generally the aims of the XUI project are to:

• Simplify application development and maintenance
• Reduce the amount of 'plumbing' code needed for an application
• Provide a powerful platform for Rich-Client applications with low overhead
• Provide a clean architecture, separating programming concerns and promoting reuse

XUI includes the following facilities:

• The User Interface (UI) can be declared in XML on a page by page basis
• Data from various source including databases and web services can be bound to the UI components via data bindings.
• Custom business logic or Java coding can be attached to the UI via event bindings
• Validation of user input can be performed by validation rules
• Built-in localization support, and resource management
• Advanced UI components and UI styling

As the framework takes care of much of the 'plumbing' code needed for the above features in many cases a XUI application need only add the application specific business logic, and this custom coding is loosely coupled to the UI and to the application data. The savings in code result in increased developer productivity and later easier application maintenance.

RIA or Rich Client applications offer many benefits by taking advantage of the local computing resources. Typically a XUI RIA application will offer a fast and responsive user interfaces, good desktop integration and the ability to run on, or off-line and in a standalone mode. The combination of features and benefits are a good match for demanding applications and the needs of power users, working best where the user makes repeated use of an application rather than casual, one-off usage.

Useful pages: XuiDevelopers, Xoetrope

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