splash screen : Java Glossary

Why Use a Splash Screen?

• Reassure the user that the program is indeed working, though it may be a while before anything useful happens.
• Entertain the user and distract him from noticing how slow program load is.
• A first impression. It is a good place to put a snazzy graphic to make your product look sexy. It will soon disappear and will not interfere with the program itself.
• Remind the user of the manufacturer’s name and the version of the program he is using. The splash image can be considered advertising space for your own company.

• You might want to avoid a splash screen because it typically hogs the screen and demands to be admired, blocking the user from doing unrelated useful work.
• It is crucial the screen appear as early as possible in the load process, or else the app appears to have gone to sleep.

Application Splash

The problem with this technique is quite a bit of JVM (Java Virtual Machine) and application code has to be loaded before the splash screen with show up on the screen.

JApplet Splash

Java Web Start Splash

<!-- adding splash image to your Java Web Start app -->
<icon href="../splash.gif" kind="splash" />

Command Line Splash

rem invoking a splash image
java.exe -splash:welcome.gif -jar mine.jar

I have not experimented to figure out where the JVM looks for the image, presumably the classpath which might include inside the jar.

Manifest Splash

You trigger a png, jpg or gif image to display while your program loads by putting a command in the jar manifest like this:

Manifest-Version: 1.0
Main-Class: Test
SplashScreen-Image: mysplash.png

You can fine tune it, but not trigger it, with the java.awt.SplashScreen class.

I have not experimented to figure out where the JVM looks for the image, presumably the classpath which might include inside the jar.

Jet Splash

The Excelsior Jet native compiler LAUNCHPAD utility will attach a splash image to your executable that starts instantly, even before the JVM loads.

Kicker Splash

The Kicker technique has the advantage you can get your splash screen up even before the JVM loads. It can also handle services like setting the directory, setting the classpath, avoiding multiple instances etc. You write a little C program that execs the JVM and your app.

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