An SVG Tool Kit for Java
By Clayton Crooks
Batik, an open-source project lead by the Apache Software Foundation, is a Java-based tool kit for incorporating Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) into applications. In addition to offering the developer tools that let you view, generate, or manipulate images, the Apache Software Foundation has released a set of applications with basic SVG functions that can be used with any standard application. The goal is to provide a complete set of core modules that can be used individually or together to develop SVG projects. For more information on SVG, read the "Integrated Design" column in this issue.
Batik provides complete applications and modules, making it easy for Java-based applications to use SVG content. According to the Web site, using Batik's SVG Generator, you can develop a Java application to export any graphics format to the SVG format. Another application can be developed using Batik's SVG processor and Viewer to easily integrate SVG viewing capabilities. Still another application uses Batik's modules to convert SVG documents to various formats, such as popular raster formats like JPEG or PNG.
Since its inception, Batik has been an open-source project. It was created when several groups working on independent SVG-related projects combined their efforts. The original teams included employees from industry giants like Eastman Kodak, Sun Microsystems, and IBM. The groups decided that their respective projects could benefit from the offerings of the others, and that combining the projects would result in a much more complete tool.
