Revisiting visual interface programming : creating GUI tools for designers and programmers

Abstract : Involving graphic designers in the large-scale development of user interfaces requires tools that provide more graphical _exibility and support ef_cient software processes. These requirements were analysed and used in the design of the TkZinc graphical library and the IntuiKit interface design environment. More _exibility is obtained through a wider palette of visual techniques and support for iterative construction of images, composition and parametric displays. More ef_cient processes are obtained with the use of the SVG standard to import graphics, support for linking graphics and behaviour, and a unifying model-driven architecture. We describe the corresponding features of our tools, and show their use in the development of an application for airports. Bene_ts include a wider access to high quality visual interfaces for specialised applications, and shorter prototyping and development cycles for multidisciplinary teams.