Multiple Device Markup Language

Description and Generation

DePaul University

School of Computer Science, Telecommunications and Information Systems

Updated on 02/17/2004 11:35 PM


Abstract Architecture Schema Documents Project Files

Contact Info

Name:               Paul D. Johnson and Jinesh Parekh

Email Address:   pdj@dls.net

URL:                 http://shrike.depaul.edu/~pjohnso2/

Project Type

· SE MS Project & Thesis (SE690), supervised by Dr. Xiaoping Jia

Project Title

·       Multiple Device Graphical User Interface Language — A Rule Approach

Abstract

XML User Interfaces provide an effective and innovative means to separate presentation from logic and data.  XML User Interfaces provide faster and more efficient methods to change and maintain code.  Traditionally, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) modification involves editing the source code, compiling, and executing the application. Yet with an XML User Interface Language a developer simply edits the XML file and restarts the GUI application.  Examples of this can be seen in applications that produce interchangeable GUIs or skins.   

The Multiple Device User Interface project is based on XML User Interface Language (XUL).  One goal is to take a XML description and with that create a framework based on rules that specify navigation, layout, and components.  Yet another goal of this project is create a generalized framework for Graphical User Interface development and to define the rule specification.  There are several devices and each is different from the other with regard to its memory, display capabilities and internal representation of the data.  Although a general representation can be used for all devices, this is sometimes thought to be too simplistic, thus the direction the User Interface framework will follow will produce a different rule set for different devices or perhaps produce different rule sets for the same device.