A developer merely defines and 'registers' swing actions,       and doesn't have to define or see menu items, buttons, etc.      (Encapsulation!)

XML attributes are accessible to actions when invoked,       making all types of configurable processing very easy.

Narrative

All XML attributes defined in the configuration file for a menu item or button are made available to the swing action at the time it is invoked. With this, the configuration goes much further than merely controlling the appearance of the application. Examples of this used in the xt application are:

• Parser class names. [Options|XML processor to use]. The 'Engine' attribute identifies the name of the 'engine' class. Certain engines may need further information: for the SAX engine, the 'Driver' attribute gives the name of the SAX driver class.
• Look-and-feel class names. New swing looks-and-feels can be added simply by adding menu options for them, giving their class names and, for Metal, their theme class names.
• Help pages. New help options can be added simply by giving their names and locations.