The only decisions you need to make about whether to use the Designer or the SDK concern the type of data you use, the type of chart you want to create, or the extent of graphic refinement that you want to incorporate.

If your data cannot be connected by JDBC, is not in XML or a flat file (that uses the separators comma, tab, semicolon, or space), or is not held in an in-memory data model, you must use the Java® API. You can, however, still write your CSS style sheet in the Designer.

You cannot develop a Resource Data chart in the Designer. You must use the SDK.

If after you complete a development cycle in the Designer you find that you require graphic refinement features that are not available in the GUI, you can achieve these by using the Java API directly.

If you decide to write your own renderer with the Java API, you may want to use even more advanced features available through the Java API of the JViews Framework.

In any case, you can carry out most of your development in the Designer.