Charts are used everywhere. It's an important tool for data scientists. When working in a web environment, d3js [1] is still the number one choice. Desktop application developers might get envious when having a look at the possibilities d3js offers. But it's no reason to resign. Charting frameworks are available for Java desktop applications too. An easy way to get started is to use SWTChart [2]. It relies on the Standard Widget Toolkit (SWT) and offers a simple way how to easily create even enterprise ready charts. The following chart types are supported:
- Line Charts (time series, etc.)
- Scatter Charts (value distributions, etc.)
- Step Charts (sensor data, etc.)
- Bar Charts (histograms, etc.)
- Pie Charts (under development)
As SWT is used, the charts have an operating system native look and feel. SWTChart has become an official Eclipse project [3]. It is developed and maintained under the umbrella of the Eclipse Foundation. The source code is hosted at GitHub [4]. Hence, SWTChart can be easily included in your own project.
Let me show you examples how to use SWTChart and its extensions. It's also possible to create customized charts and to export the data in a generic way. It uses the convention over configuration pattern. Size, colors, axes, ranges and all aspects of the charts can be modified either live or via the settings. Moreover, the library already contains a data compression modus to display large data sets in a fast way. We will explore in detail the many technical improvements, that are required to create a chart library and to enable a fluent display of the data.
This session enables the listeners to include Eclipse SWTChart in own projects and to customize the charting engine to their own needs.
[1] https://d3js.org
[2] http://www.swtchart.org
[3] https://projects.eclipse.org/proposals/eclipse-swtchart
[4] https://github.com/eclipse/swtchart
