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Defense > Developing with design tools > Using the Symbol Compiler > Using compiled symbols in applications > What is a compiled symbol?
 
What is a compiled symbol?
A compiled symbol is a subclass of IlvCompositeGraphic. It can directly be used in an IlvManager or an IlvGrapher, independently of SDM or IlvDiagrammer objects.
You can use a compiled symbol class at different levels:
*in an IlvDiagrammer application
*in a runtime Dashboard application
*at the Graphic Framework level
All the CSS rules of the symbol are translated into Java™ code in applicable conditions, with direct function calls to customize the symbol elements. The constant values specified in the Symbol Editor are statically cast or converted to expected types in the generated code.
The benefits in terms of performance can be seen at run time:
*no need for rule matching operations
*no method invocations through introspection
*fewer value conversions
In addition to the performance improvements, the compiled symbol, as a Java class, can be extended to offer additional flexibility. You may, for example, use the Symbol Editor to build your symbol with different states based on simple rules that use Boolean parameters. Then you can override the parameter functions in your subclass to do whatever you want in Java using the Rogue Wave® JViews Graphic Framework SDK.

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