Question

I am working on a project where there is a Java client that needs to run on both Windows and Mac. At the top is a search box, which appears correctly on Windows but incorrectly on Macintosh. You can also see how the cursor does not appear right.

Any help would be much appreciated in trying to work out why this is happening.

Answer 1

I would suggest either to reduce the font-size or make the box higher to accommodate the text inside the box.

Also, if its not required that the GUI looks native, you might want to enable the NIMBUS look and feel (from Java 6u14 I think). I’ve made applications where its more important that the app looks the same between OSes, than it is that the app looks more like a native app on that OS. Your requirements might differ from app to app 🙂

You can enable Numbus by calling (usually in public static void main(…):

   try {
        for (UIManager.LookAndFeelInfo info : UIManager.getInstalledLookAndFeels()) {
            if ("Nimbus".equals(info.getName())) {
                UIManager.setLookAndFeel(info.getClassName());
                break;
            }
        }
    } catch (Exception e) {
        // If Nimbus is not available, you can set the GUI to another look and feel.
    }