This collection of frequently asked questions (FAQ) provides brief answers to many common questions about Java 2D.

• What is Java 2D?
• Who needs Java 2D?
• What features does Java 2D add to the Java platform?
• How is text handling enhanced in Java 2D?
• Is Java 2D compatible with previous versions of java.awt?
• What other APIs that Sun is creating relate to Java 2D?
• How is Java 2D related to the Java Foundation Classes?
• Does Sun Microsystem's Java 2D API implementation integrate Adobe's "Bravo" imaging model?
• How and when can I get Java 2D?

What is Java 2D?

Java 2D provides a powerful, flexible framework for device- and resolution-independent 2D graphics. It is a set of classes that extend the capabilities of Sun's Abstract Windowing Toolkit (AWT). Java 2D handles arbitrary shapes, text, and images and provides a uniform mechanism for performing transformations, such as rotation and scaling, on these objects. With Java 2D, application developers can support a wide array of presentation devices such as displays and printers, as well as image formats and encodings, color spaces, and rendering techniques and effects. Java 2D also offers comprehensive text and font handling, as well as color support.
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Who needs Java 2D?

The Java 2D API provides many benefits to developers who want to incorporate graphics, text, and images into their applications and applets - in other words - the Java 2D API benefits virtually all Java developers. By enabling the incorporation of sophisticated graphics and text, the Java 2D API makes it possible for developers to create Java programs that provide a richer end-user experience.
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What features does Java 2D add to the Java platform?

Graphics:

• Antialiased rendering
• Bezier paths
• Coordinate Transforms
• Compositing
• Richer text attributes
• Arbitrary fill styles
• Stroking parameters for lines and curves Transparency

Text:

• Extended font support
• Advanced text layout
• Antialiased text rendering
  

Images:

• Flexible in-memory image layouts
• Extended image filters, such as convolution Lookup tables, and affine transformation

Devices:

• Hooks for supporting arbitrary graphics devices such as printers and screens

Color Management:

• ICC profile support
• Color conversion from different color spaces
• Arbitrary color spaces
• Benefits

Java 2D offers comprehensive text and font handling. It can utilize platform fonts that are available in either True Type or Type 1 formats. This capability expands the range of fonts available to Java applications.

Java 2D also provides internationalized text handling. This includes support for bi- directional line layout that allows for high quality, two-way display of lines of text.

This functionality is important for development of applications using languages with different writing directions, such as Arabic, Hebrew and Japanese.
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Is Java 2D compatible with previous versions of java.awt?

Yes. Applications written using Java 2D are completely backwards compatible with older versions of java.awt.

Java 2D compatibility extends java.awt. Therefore, developers do not need to change the structure of their programs to use Java 2D since it follows the same programming model as existing classes in the java.awt and java.awt.image packages.
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What other APIs that Sun is creating relate to Java 2D?

Java 2D is part of a family of APIs that work together as a suite to provide customers with enhanced graphics capabilities, as well as extended communications capabilities. These APIs include: Java Media Framework that includes components for playing, recording, and conferencing time-based media; Java Sound; Java 3D; Java Animation; Java Advanced Imaging; Java Telephony; Java Speech; and Java Collaboration.
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How is Java 2D related to the Java Foundation Classes?

Java 2D is a critical component of the Java Foundation Classes (JFC), a set of classes that simplify commercial GUI development. JFC are core to the Java Platform and provides a cross platform solutions to developers writing applications using these customizable components.
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Does Sun Microsystem's Java 2D API implementation integrate Adobe's "Bravo" imaging model?

The Java 2D API specification was jointly developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc. and Adobe System, Inc. The Sun implementation of the Java 2D API that was incorporated into the Java^TM 2 SDK, Standard Edition, v 1.2 does not include any code licensed from Adobe.
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How and when can I get Java 2D?

Java 2D was introduced in the Java^TM2 SDK, Standard Edition, v 1.2 which has already been released.
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