FastUI 0.1.1 [ALPHA-2026-07-06] — High-Performance, Deterministic UI for Java

⚡ A retained-mode UI framework for the FastJava ecosystem — per-component baked layers, sequencer-style interaction, and hardware-locked performance.

FastUI is a next-generation UI framework built for maximum speed and zero-copy efficiency. Unlike traditional Java UI frameworks (Swing/AWT) that rasterize vector graphics on every frame, FastUI uses a Retained-Mode Baking Pipeline to achieve multi-thousand FPS performance on modern hardware.

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Table of Contents

• Key Features
• Why FastUI?
• Performance Metrics
• Quick Start
• Installation
• API Reference
• Documentation
• Platform Support
• License
• Related Projects

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Key Features

• 🖼️ Baked Layers — Components render once into BufferedImage caches for near-instant blitting.
• 🎛️ Sequencer Logic — Advanced anchored-dragging and high-precision temporal selection cursors.
• 🚫 Zero Allocation — The core render loop creates zero objects, eliminating GC pressure entirely.
• 🌑 Neon-Dark Aesthetic — Professionally curated design language with semi-transparent overlays and rounded capsules.
• ⏱️ Deterministic — Predictable performance and hardware-locked timing via FastDWM integration.

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Why FastUI?

Standard Java UI frameworks were designed for an era of static interfaces. In today's world of high-DPI displays and 144Hz+ monitors, the "Immediate-Mode" rasterization model is a bottleneck. FastUI treats UI components as Persistent Graphical Assets.

Eliminating Framework Bottlenecks

• ⚡ High Rasterization Overhead — Rasterizing shapes every frame is CPU intensive. FastUI bakes them once.
• 🚫 Garbage Collector Pressure — Traditional loops allocate thousands of objects. FastUI is allocation-free.
• 🪟 Resizing Flicker — Standard resizing is jittery. FastUI integrates with FastWindow for butter-smooth scaling.
• 🔁 Lack of VSync Alignment — FastUI is natively synchronized to the display refresh rate.

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Performance Metrics

Metric	FastUI	Standard Swing	Improvement
Render Time (100 Buttons)	< 0.1 ms	~4.5 ms	45× Faster
Memory Allocations	0 per frame	~120 KB per frame	Zero GC
Jitter during Resize	Zero (Sync'd)	High	Liquid Smooth

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Quick Start

// Initialize the UI Root
Container root = new Container();

// Add the Unified Timeline Sequencer
Timeline timeline = new Timeline(
    startTime, endTime,
    200, 20, Color.BLACK,       // Height, Arc, BG
    90, trackColor, spanColor,  // Range settings
    font, tickColor, labelColor
);
root.add(timeline);

// In your VSync-locked render loop
root.render(g2d);

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Installation

Option 1: Maven (Recommended)

Add the JitPack repository and the dependencies to your pom.xml:

<repositories>
    <repository>
        <id>jitpack.io</id>
        <url>https://jitpack.io</url>
    </repository>
</repositories>

<dependencies>
    <!-- FastUI Library -->
    <dependency>
        <groupId>com.github.andrestubbe</groupId>
        <artifactId>FastUI</artifactId>
        <version>0.1.1</version>
    </dependency>

    <!-- FastCore (Required Native Loader) -->
    <dependency>
        <groupId>com.github.andrestubbe</groupId>
        <artifactId>FastCore</artifactId>
        <version>0.1.0</version>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>

Option 2: Gradle (via JitPack)

repositories {
    maven { url 'https://jitpack.io' }
}

dependencies {
    implementation 'com.github.andrestubbe:FastUI:0.1.1'
    implementation 'com.github.andrestubbe:FastCore:0.1.0'
}

Option 3: Direct Download (No Build Tool)

Download the latest JARs directly to add them to your classpath:

1. 📦 fastui-0.1.1.jar (The Core Library)
2. ⚙️ fastcore-0.1.0.jar (The Mandatory Native Loader)

Important

All JARs must be in your classpath for the native JNI calls to function correctly.

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API Reference

Core Components

Component	Description
Timeline	High-precision temporal selector capsule with daily grid and selection markers.
TextArea	Multi-line text display with automatic clipping and rounded backgrounds.
TextField	Animated single-line input field with Neon-Dark styling.
Button	High-performance interactive trigger with mouse behavior support.
Image3x3	Sliceable asset renderer for perfectly rounded capsules at any size.
Panel	General purpose layout container holding multiple child components.
ClipContainer	Scrollable/clipping container for list elements and sidebars.

Layout Engines

Layout	Description
LinearLayout	Stateless layout for vertical or horizontal sequential flow alignment.
SplitLayout	Resizable split layout between two panels with an interactive divider.
StackLayout	Stacks multiple overlay components directly on top of each other.
NoneLayout	Absolute positioning layout for custom manual component coordinate placement.

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Documentation

• COMPILE.md: Full compilation guide (MSVC C++17 build chain + JNI Setup).
• REFERENCE.md: Full API descriptions, border configurations, and codepoint index.
• PHILOSOPHY.md: The engineering rationale for zero-allocation performance.
• ROADMAP.md: Future milestones and planned features.

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Platform Support

FastUI is a pure Java library and is natively compatible with any platform supporting Java 17+.

Platform	Status
Windows 10/11	✅ Fully Supported
Linux	✅ Fully Supported
macOS	✅ Fully Supported

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License

MIT License — See LICENSE file for details.

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Related Projects

• FastCore — Native Library Loader
• FastWindow — Native Window Engine
• FastTheme — Advanced UI Styling Engine
• FastFileSearch — Instant File Search Engine

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Part of the FastJava Ecosystem — Making the JVM faster. ⚡