Writing a GUI for a program has always been a daunting, depressing, and frustrating task. It doesn't matter which language, its extremely hard to get what I want. Especially in compiled languages like Java where a change takes a minute or two to build.
The result is that I increasingly use GUI designers for some of my project. Sure there is some spagetti code, but as long as I leave the configuration and a note saying "This was designed with X" I have no qualms with doing this.
Is this an okay way to design a GUI? More importantly, is this what most people do? Or is the common way to just sit down and write it out?
Best Answer
I have never actually found a visual designer that makes it easy to create robust designs (if anyone has any they like, feel free to correct me). They are nice for dumping stuff on a fixed-size window to mock things up, but when it comes to making something that resizes nicely, plays well with DPI and themes, and all the other stuff that separates a professional UI from a merely "good-enough" one, they honestly become more work than just coding it up yourself (assuming a decent UI framework to play with).
Visual designers are excellent for rapidly prototyping software, trialling designs, and playing around to see how stuff looks, but I wouldn't use one for the final build.