User:Wvengen@nikhef.nl/JGridStart/Grix

Grix is "an open source Java gui application to help users handle security related tasks within a grid environment". It has almost all functionality that jGridStart aims to achieve and more, but not completely. There are some issues with Grix:

• User-interface is a bit bare and not very polished
  • default size of dialogs and controls are often just off
  • inconsistency: different fonts and layouts at different places
  • visual clutter (like edit boxes used for display purposes)
• Size: 12MB is a little bigger than I'd expect but acceptable
• Multiple certificates are not supported
• The guidance that Grix gives at the bottom and in help dialogs (good!) could be improved here and there
• A verification form form is part of a the certificate request procedure and should be printed by the application

This tool is often the first contact of a user with the grid. This means that abbreviations and new concepts like proxy, VO and VORMS should be explained in a natural way. Also a certain cleanness and attractiveness helps the user to feel at ease, especially when he or she is easily overwhelmed by the complexities of the grid at first contact. Some of the tasks are done like once a year, so one cannot expect that the user is an expert.

While Grix certainly is the best option available right now, it remains a question if jGridStart would be best off as an expansion of Grix, or if it should be created from scratch with imports from Grix where sensible.