Rapidly configure and integrate sophisticated Java planning or scheduling Gantt chart displays. ILOG JViews Gantt makes it easy. Experience fine-grained control over every aspect of your Gantt chart's look-and-feel—with very little coding. Deploy on the desktop or as an Ajax thin client.

Data and representation separation Scheduling data model Multiple views of schedule data Full interaction for complete control Handle very large data sets XML support for easy integration Full customization with class library Deploy on your desktop or the Web

Fast development for Web-based planning and scheduling
Quickly create Web-based planning and scheduling applications. ILOG JViews Gantt is a complete set of Java components, tools and application programming interfaces (APIs) for viewing and editing schedules. The JViews Gantt software also includes JViews Charts, allowing you to display any type of chart.

Examples of Gantt Chart. Enlarge thumbnails (opens a new window).

ILOG JViews Gantt includes resource and task-oriented views, as well as resource load charts. Comprehensive editing and viewing features provide complete display control. A load-on-demand mechanism accommodates very large data sets. Printing options expedite hard copies. You rapidly deploy in applications, applets and Web thin clients:

• Customize look-and-feel with minimal Java coding
  ILOG JViews Gantt's Designer tool lets you personalize Gantt charts using a point-and-click editor. Choose data-source parameters or select templates. Define styling rules. Then load the output file into the application at runtime. A comprehensive software development kit (SDK), with powerful APIs, means you don't sacrifice flexibility. With Designer, you build exactly the interface your users need.

Gantt Designer. Click to enlarge (opens a new window).

Data and representation separation
ILOG JViews Gantt implements a Swing-like model view controller (MVC) architecture, providing clear separation between data and its screen representations. The data model is completely open and extensible, allowing it to connect with any other application component. Notifications are automatic and transparent - when the data model changes, views are updated; when the user interacts with views, the model is changed.

Scheduling data model
The data model is the heart of the Gantt chart, responsible for communicating with external applications (getting and setting the data), performing end-user actions (adding an activity or a resource), and updating the different views. For fast prototyping, a prebuilt data model with XML input and output is provided by default.

During application design, Java developers implement the abstract data model in order to adapt and connect the Gantt chart with the scheduling system. Developers can add information to be displayed by using any kind of communication protocol (native application API, XML, JDBC, RMI, CORBA, and more).

Typically, scheduling information contains four data types:

• Activities - tasks to perform
• Resources - persons, machines
• Reservations - assigning resources to activities
• Constraints - dependencies between activities (for example, "activity1 must start before activity2")

Display critical paths
JViews Gantt includes an option to display the critical path in any schedule. Basic algorithms are included for calculation and display.

Multiple views of schedule data
Different operations demand individual scheduling interfaces for tasks such as viewing factory machines along with activities, or listing activities, dependency, and time occurrence. Users often need to edit information, either with tables or by moving activity bars in a Gantt sheets.

ILOG JViews Gantt satisfies all these demands, accommodating prebuilt combinations of displays -- such as tables plus Gantt sheets -- and allowing users to add custom views. Once views are connected to a common data model, JViews Gantt keeps them synchronized:

• Activity-oriented chart (Gantt chart)
  Gantt charts let users see when tasks are scheduled, as well as constraints between tasks. These charts are often used in project planning tools.
  Example of an activity-oriented chart
  
  
• Resource-oriented chart (schedule chart)
  Schedule charts indicate when resources are scheduled. For example, a factory floor schedule might show what tasks machines (resources) are working on at any given time.
  Example of a resource-oriented chart
  
  
• Table view
  Resources or activities are presented in a table derived from Swing's JTable. Rows can be expanded or collapsed to represent subresources or subactivities.
  
  
• Calendar Views
  Standard month and day views
  Example of a JViews Gantt calendar view
  
  
• PERT Chart View
  Activities and constraints are drawn in this diagram view. (ILOG JViews Diagrammer license required.)
  Example of a JViews Gantt PERT view

Full interaction for complete control
Scheduling views come with a comprehensive set of prebuilt interactions. Activities can be created, moved, or resized by drag-and-drop editing. Constraints can be drawn simply. Alternatively, table view lets users enter values in text mode. Once triggered, each action is performed by the data model that dispatches the update event to the connected views. Under certain application conditions, the data model can forbid and reject some actions.

Handle very large data sets
Most scheduling applications deal with data volumes too large to be completely loaded into memory. To overcome this limitation, ILOG JViews Gantt can load data as needed for display:

• Vertical load-on-demand is used to defer loading of row data in both Gantt and schedule charts
• Horizontal load-on-demand is used in resource-oriented schedule charts, allowing deferred loading of reservation data based on the currently displayed time interval

XML support for easy integration
An XML extension called Schedule Data eXchange Language (SDXL) can be used to:

• Serialize Gantt and schedule charts -- this is particularly useful for displaying and interacting with Gantt charts while disconnected from the scheduling application. Users can transfer an SDXL document, work offline, then upload the document to the application when reconnected.
• Exchange scheduling data with other programs -- XSLT can be used to translate XML-based scheduling languages to SDXL and vise-versa.

Java developers can extend SDXL to add application-specific information.

Full customization with class library
The component-development library is fully documented, allowing Java developers to customize Gantt charts and integrate new services. The data model, the table view, the Gantt and schedule views, and every piece of the ILOG JViews Gantt can be extended as needed.

Deploy on your desktop or the Web
Displays built with ILOG JViews Gantt can be deployed as traditional Java applications and applets, or as Ajax-enhanced web clients, or in portlets. Traditional Java applets and applications are best suited to highly interactive tasks; use thin clients for wide deployment in a browser-based environment. JViews Web clients are provided as Java Server Faces (JSF) components, and they leverage Ajax concepts for greater interactivity and reduced roundtrips to the server.
View the whitepaper, "Ajax for Graphics-Intensive Web Applications".

Ajax-enhanced Web client (left) and portal container showing a JViews Gantt portlet (right). Enlarge thumbnails (opens a new window).

Try a JViews demo
Experience JViews for yourself with a hands-on demo.