java swing app with a custom titlebar?

Question

Is there a way to write a Java Swing application with a custom chrome? Please take a look* at the frame for Microsoft's Zune 4.0 software.

I realize that colors, the shape of scroll bars, etc. are controlled by skins or looks and feels. Right now I'm trying to tackle the native window which houses the java components--the title bar mainly.

Thanks

(*) http://www.winsupersite.com/zune/zune4%5Fshots.asp

Answer 1

The Look and Feel of Swing apps are pluggable..that is it can change on the fly. You can create your own look and feel but its not a simple undertaking. To get started this tutorial explains. This article does a little more.

This project demonstrates what could be done. So its up to your imagination.

Answer 2

No part of a Swing component's look and feel is "native" in any way. Swing components are "lightweight", which means they are entirely drawn on the Java side, and not at all on the windowing system side.

To create custom "chrome" you create the UI delegates for one or more components. In yor case, you'd want to muck around with the delegates for JRootPane and JInternalFrame.

Answer 3

By default the frame of a JFrame is native. This can be removed by calling Frame.setUndecorated. The Sun Window PL&F does not provide a title bar. You could hack a JInternalFrame so that it draws the frame, although that probably isn't going to be as easy as it may seem. Of course, if you are going the full custom route, you can draw whatever you want. From 6u10, Sun's JRE also provides APIs to make windows transparent and non-rectangular.