View source for Code Generation for GUI vs WYSIWYG design of GUI

Advantages for Code Generation are:
* can generate for several target frameworks, perhaps even Desktop Application and Web Application
* can fix one problem centrally, and regenerate all screens with the fix
* unique look&feel across the application
* no problems with visual inheritance etc


Advantages for designing the GUI with a WYSIWYG editor are:
* the developer can see what he/she is doing
* easier connection of events and methods to the buttons and other controls


Option to use advantages of both:
* the WYSIWYG editor stores the layout in way that can be picked up by the generator, and then the generator can keep the manual settings
* both the generator and the WYSIWYG editor can use the same data format to define a screen, eg. Glade, or even the code to create the controls (eg InitializeComponent)


In the end the solution might look like this:
* screens that always look the same, are generated
* as much as possible, complex parts of a screen are wrapped into a user control, which can be edited by a WYSIWYG editor
* the window frames and menu and toolbars are generated