Jultral   
Home Page

The Jultral pages are intended for software developers.

What is Jultral?

Jultral is an experimental collection of GUI and other java classes initially started several years ago in response to difficulties in making effective use of early versions of Java.  The aim is to develop an ultra-light set of objects.  They are developed to the Java 1.1 level and do not make use of the Swing package.  Many of the classes subclass Component/Container in the AWT package.  The package does not fully implement the JavaBeans API.

While the initial objective is to develop a properly working package, a follow-on objective is to make the package truly ultra-light by restricting the dependence on AWT Component/Container to a single interface object at the root of the object tree.

Is there any point in Jultral?

This is a good question.  The package works well enough for our purposes and offers some advantages, in terms of what we want to do, over AWT/Swing.

The big question is how effective is it? We have no hard information at present.  What we intend to do, once other issues have settled down, is to conduct some parallel exercises in development, efficiency and usability against: a) AWT b) AWT/Swing and c) Eclipse SWT.  Then we will have a clearer picture.

We expect the package to become of more interest once it reaches version 1.0 which will be considered the first 'production' release.

What does 'Jultral' mean?

'Jultral' is just a name, but may be thought of as influenced by the description of 'Java ultra light'.

Is Jultral Publically Available?

Jultral does not represent one of our core business objectives and consequently we have decided to release a version under the Mozilla Triple License.  It may be freely downloaded from the link provided below.  Note that there are caveats relating to its use.  In particular, it should be regarded as experimental and is not offered as a general purpose package.  Also be aware that the Sun Java packages required to support Jultral are subject to their own licenses.

Download the Jultral Package

The download file is a zip file containing among other things the Jultral classes in source and compiled form as well as a sample program.

Download the Jultral Package

Known Problems

Some known problems with Jultral objects are listed here.  The list does not provide a complete list of issues awaiting attention.  It is restricted to any significant usability issues.

Known Problems