Book excerpt: Filthy Rich Clients refers to ultra-graphically rich applications that ooze cool. They suck the user in from the outset and hang on to them with a death grip of excitement. Filthy Rich Clients: Developing Animated and Graphical Effects for Desktop JavaTM Applications shows you how to build better, more effective, cooler desktop applications that intensify the user experience. The keys to Filthy Rich Clients are graphical and animated effects. These kinds of effects provide ways of enhancing the user experience of the application through more attractive GUIs, dynamic effects that give your application a pulse, and animated transitions that keep your user connected to the logical flow of the application. The book also discusses how to do so effectively, making sure to enrich applications in sensible ways. In-depth coverage includes Graphics and GUI fundamentals: Dig deep into the internals of how Swing and Java 2D work together to display GUI applications onscreen. Learn how to maximize the flexibility of these libraries and use them most effectively. Performance: Follow in-depth discussions and tips throughout the book that will help you write high-performing GUI applications. Images: Understand how images are created and used to make better Java applications. Advanced graphics: Learn more about elements of Swing and Java 2D that are of particular benefit to Filthy Rich Clients. Animation: Discover general concepts of animation, as well as how to use the facilities provided in the Java platform. Learn new utility libraries that vastly simplify animations in Java. Effects: Learn how to create, customize, and use static and animated effects—the mainstays of Filthy Rich Clients. Code examples illustrate key concepts, and the book’s companion Web site, http://filthyrichclients.org, includes extensive demos, utility libraries, additional information on related technologies, and more. Informal, fun, and, most of all, useful, this book is great for any developer working with Java to build desktop applications.