Evaluating GUI Design Software

If you’re in need of an interactive screen, you have How do I even start building a GUI?
likely searched the internet and found your way to
the term “GUI”, short for graphical user interface. Modern user interfaces (UI) are creating the
You’re in the right place! Creating a GUI will allow need for extremely robust, yet accessible GUIs.
your customers to directly interact with your product Maybe you need to communicate information
through an embedded display or touch screen. It’s received from a medical scope, or maybe you
incredibly exciting to kick off a project like this, but need to see the output from a machine that’s
simply getting started can be the hardest part. vital to your product and the end-user.

Whether you’re a graphic designer in charge of Whatever your industry or need, we can help you
mocking up the actual UI design or you’re the determine what to think about as you start the
software engineer assigned to coding it, we’re going building process.
to help you through the process of evaluating GUI
design software so you can make the best decision We’re going to break down the five things to
for your team and project moving forward. consider when evaluating GUI design software.

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 5 things to consider when evaluating
GUI design software

Compatibility Support Advanced

Features Cost
and Ease and Services Considerations

1. Compatibility and ease of the tool

You will need to think about how much time material (BOM) can bear? If your product requires a
you have for the project, how complicated of a more cost-sensitive chip, then you need a tool that is
process getting the code on the hardware will be flexible enough to support right-priced hardware.
and how robust of a GUI you actually need. Think
about how you are really going to use this GUI. Altia can work on all platforms or hardware,
no matter the size—from the smallest chip with
Some tools require more coding from your team, kilobyte memories and a couple-inch display to
so that adds time and the necessity for someone more powerful parts driving multiple 4K or larger
who knows the logic. This is where you might displays with immersive 3D graphics. Altia can
start to think about hand-coding your GUI. adapt your design to your hardware without
having to redo everything from the ground up.
Hand-coding takes a long time—that’s just a fact.
You might think that you only need four screens, Likewise, it’s important to note that some GUI
but once you get to working with a prototype, development tools require a certain operating
you realize that six screens will be more effective system. That operating system can also have
and have a better user experience. Then, when hardware requirements which drive up the total
you think you’re all wrapped up, your marketing BOM cost. Unlike those other solutions, Altia’s
team wants you to change the display to be software does not rely on any operating system.
on-brand with the new brand standards, so you
have to redo everything. We’ve been there. Here at Altia, we haven’t come across a piece
of hardware that we can’t support. Plus, Altia
When you’re hand-coding, each iteration takes time can work with any OS or no OS at all. We have
to manually change every single detail. This doesn’t solutions available to deliver the best performing,
account for all the additional coding that would be re- right-priced platform for your specific project.
quired when new functionalities and feature requests
roll out or for the regression caused by modifications Some examples of hardware supported by
to the existing code. Additionally, this doesn’t account our DeepScreen code generator include
for the case where the production hardware needs STMicroelectronics, Infineon, NXP, Renesas,
to change. (We’re encountering a chip shortage now, Texas Instruments and Qualcomm, as well as
which could change the hardware for many compa- operating systems like Linux, QNX, Green Hills,
nies moving forward, at least in the short-term.) iOS, Windows and, of course, Android.

What about hardware? Some tools require high-end, Most other tools can’t say what we can: we
more expensive hardware. Is that a cost your bill of specialize in generating super-optimized graphics

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code—high performance and the lowest possible porting to make it run properly on your hardware.
footprint. We do that by taking advantage of We evaluate your platform and generate code
all the features on your selected processor. to make each hardware feature sing, so you get
the best performance while saving BOM cost.
When we create a DeepScreen target, we don’t
create something generic that needs a lot of work or

2. Features Typical features to evaluate:

• G
 raphics or design images – • Rapid prototyping, simulation, and
Now that you’ve thought about
can you import artwork from mid-development testing to make
your goal for the GUI and know
any tool, like Photoshop, sure you’re on the right track
the hardware you’re going
Illustrator, Maya, Sketch, etc.?
to use, you can start thinking • Hardware testing and backtrack-
about the fun stuff: design and • Seamless integration of your ing abilities to make any tweaks
development. The next part of company’s branding and
the evaluation process includes • On hardware performance
image – can you customize a
looking at all of the tool’s features. library of design elements? • Boot time

One piece of advice we want to • Fonts capabilities for global • Coding language capabilities – are
offer you is to always ask your language support (including you using C or C++? Does that
questions up–front, no matter right-to-left scripts) work with your hardware?
what tool you are using. We don’t
• Font designs • User-friendly drag and
want you to get 75% of the way
through building your GUI just drop interface
• Animations
to realize the tool doesn’t have
• WYSIWYG editor for inte-
a feature that you really need. • 3D capabilities
grated development
• T
 he ability to integrate
• Hardware and OS support
2D and 3D content
(Is an OS actually required?)
• Streamlined user-friendly
• Average production time
workflows – can your
artists start in their favorite
graphics software first?

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 Design Develop Test

HW
Concept GUI
Graphics
System UX
Authoring
Code Integrate Test Certify Production
Rqmts

3. Support and services

One thing that can get lost in the pricing and features that surprises happen and problems can arise right
list is support. Here at Altia, support is our top priority. when you’re on the verge of missing a deadline.
We allow you to choose the level of support that
your team needs. We all know that time is money, Something else to think about in the realm of
so getting your team’s support issues resolved support is your team’s capabilities. Do you have
quickly is key to staying on time and on budget. all of the expertise you need to get your GUI from
a concept to reality? As we mentioned in our
Do you need email responses only? Do you need Getting Started with HMI Software article, you
customer-dedicated, on-site personnel? Do you need a variety of people working on the GUI.
need multi-language support, like German, Chinese,
French, Italian and Korean? We never just provide We’ve seen it all. Maybe you have a rockstar team
a simple templated response or send you an article of graphic designers who have sketched up the
to figure out the answer yourself. We care about most beautiful display you have ever seen. But
any problems you’re encountering and want they have no clue how to code and get this user
you to get moving again in 24 hours or less. interface ported to embedded hardware. Or maybe
you have the tech resources and logic experts,
Beyond simple technical support, we help you through but you don’t have the UX person to bring in
the unexpected. As we mentioned earlier, what if your that end-user perspective to your UI design.
particular hardware becomes unavailable? Instead of
directing you back to the beginning of your process Altia offers solutions to fill in any gaps that you may
using the tool, we will support your transition to a have. Our response to your problem will always
new hardware. Recall issues? Not on our watch. be: we can do that. While we are not a contract
engineering house, we have the tools and the drive to
If a service is free or has a free trial, make sure that help you get your project to completion. Jeff Stewart,
you have a level of support beyond what you think our Director of Global Sales Engineering, says it best,
you need at the beginning. As GUI experts, we know “We will truly help you get a product done. Come
to us and we will do it better, smaller and faster.”

4. Advanced considerations: questions to ask

Now that you have thought about the ease of Will you need advanced testing done? Does
the tool, features that are important to you and your product need to meet any certifications
various support levels, we challenge you to look (typically required for automotive and medical
toward the future and think outside the box. devices)? Does your product need to adhere
to any safety or quality requirements?

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What kind of hardware will you need later on? Will your software allow you to reuse your graphic
We mentioned this earlier, but the tool you assets so that you don’t have to start from square
choose may only work with certain hardware one? Will your software allow you to generate code
options, so make sure to check on this before for lower cost hardware that will align with the
purchasing any software – not just for your current price point needed for these different models?
platform but possible alternatives as well.
We know these are a lot of questions to think
Additionally, what about licensing? Do you about and ask, but they will absolutely help
receive temporary licensing or perpetual you on the front-end of your project.
access? Where is your data stored?
Lastly, one thing we see come up often for customers
Is it possible that you will want to scale your GUI is that they need maintenance once the initial
to a family of products? Maybe you will start with project is complete. Make sure to ask about product
a premium model, but later on, you could add that updates and implementation, as well as system
feature to a middle or lower-end model. Does your maintenance if issues come up months or years later.
product need to be updated post-production and
will your GUI be capable of over-the-air updates?

5. Price

The last consideration is price. While this tends to BOM cost, you will eventually pay more for the
be the most common evaluator because it’s easy materials required for each item you produce.
to compare two numbers, it shouldn’t be the main
consideration. GUI design software is on a spectrum While we encourage you to do as much research
when it comes to cost—there are free options out as possible, we don’t want you to get exhausted
there and there are more expensive options, all before your project even begins. Our Altia
ranging in capabilities, support and features. experts specialize in providing a premium
experience and full-service support for projects
When evaluating GUI software, think about the other in automotive, medical, consumer device, home
considerations discussed here. Then make sure to appliance, industrial devices and beyond.
prioritize what is important to you and your team.
If your team is small, maybe think about prioritizing We will work with you to find a solution and
support and services, especially if the tool has the abil- get your product to completion, building you
ity to fill the gap of any team members you’re lacking. a high performance, professional-looking GUI
on time and with optimized performance.
If your tool is inexpensive but difficult to use,
you may end up using any previous savings Are you interested in talking one-on-one
on development costs. Similarly, if your tool with someone from our team?
forces a hardware or OS choice that drives up your > Request a free, no commitment demo now!

Contact Us
For more information about how Altia can help you get your next great GUI into production,
visit www.altia.com or email [email protected].

Altia, Inc., World HQ Altia Europe GmbH Altia Japan KK Altia Korea LLC
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Tel: +1 719 598-4299 Germany Tel: +81 3-6863-6349 Tel: +82 10-5026-0744
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