Does Java allow you to use native UI widgets on Mac OS X?

Question

If I write an application in java, does it use native widgets if run on Mac OS X? Or does it use "lookalike" widgets provided by the java runtime?

Thanks.

Answer 1

You can use SWT which uses native OS X controls on OS X but also remains multi-platform (provided that platform has the SWT library compiled for it). However, it is not as flexible or will look as nice as having direct access to the UI components themselves (an abstraction has to be made).

You could also have a look at MacWidgets which attempt to be like native OS X widgets but aren't, but work cross-platform.

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