Metawidget is an object/user interface mapping tool for Java environments. The term object/user interface mapping (OIM) refers to the technique of inspecting objects, at runtime, and creating User Interface (UI) widgets.

As much as possible, Metawidget does this without introducing new technologies. As shown in Figure 1, Metawidget inspects an application's existing back-end architecture (such as JavaBeans, XML configuration files, annotations) and creates widgets native to its existing front-end framework (such as Swing, Java Server Faces, Struts or Android).

Figure 1. Metawidget inspects existing back-ends and creates widgets native to existing front-ends

Building great UIs is both art and science. Metawidget does not attempt to address the art, it only automates the science. That is to say, it does not overlap with those areas of UI design involving creativity and subjectivity - its goal is only to ease the creation of areas that are already rigidly defined. Typically, this means those areas that display data and those that collect data - these tend to be both commonplace and consistent (indeed, consistency is a desirable trait) so there is good opportunity for automation.

	Note
	This User Guide and Reference Documentation is included in the distribution as a PDF, a single HTML page or as multiple HTML pages, depending on your reading preference.