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Motorola boosts wireless GUI
The effort to improve the 'look-and-feel' of mobile devices continued with the unveiling of of a graphical user interface (GUI) extension for Java 2 Micro Edition (J2ME) by Motorola Corp. 's Semiconductor Products Sector based in Austin, Texas. The new Lightweight Windowing Toolkit (LWT) can be added to any implementation of J2ME that is compliant to the Mobile Information Device Profile (MIDP) specification, Motorola officials said.
This advanced applications programming interface (API) is said to enhance the J2ME GUI capabilities, giving developers full control of the look and feel of new applications. The LWT toolkit integrates with and enhances the MIDP with a component-level API that is said to allow developers to control the content and layout of screens. The tool cab be used to add user interface elements such as buttons, checkboxes, text fields and images can be added to J2ME applications. Developers can mix standard MIDP screens with LWT screens in the same application. LWT integrates with and extends the MIDP without impacting the portability of MIDP-compliant applications. LWT is also extensible, so developers can create imaginative new components, or match the look and feel of components used in their applications on other platforms.
The LWT specifications along with white papers, a programming guide, sample programs and technical documentation can be downloaded from http://www.motorola.com/java.
About the Author
Mike Bucken is former Editor-in-Chief of Application Development Trends magazine.