Violet (Very Intuitive Object Layout Editing Tool) is an easy-to-learn, open source UML editor.
Violet is intended for students, teachers, and authors who need to produce simple UML diagrams quickly. It’s not intended as an industrial strength tool.
Violet can be started as a single application, an applet, via Java Web Start, or as an Eclipse plugin.
- Implements the following diagrams:
- Use Case Diagrams – captures the requirements of a system. Use cases are a way of communicating with users and other stakeholders what the system is intended to do.
- Class Diagrams – shows the building blocks of any object-orientated system.
- Activity Diagrams – displays the sequence of activities.
- Sequence Diagrams – a form of interaction diagram which shows objects as lifelines running down the page, with their interactions over time represented as messages drawn as arrows from the source lifeline to the target lifeline.
- State Machine Diagrams – models the behaviour of a single object, specifying the sequence of events that an object goes through during its lifetime in response to events.
- Object Diagrams – use a subset of the elements of a class diagram in order to emphasize the relationship between instances of classes at some point in time.
- Fully integrated into Eclipse.
- Open multiple documents.
- Supports direct links between diagrams.
- Nice drawing with automatic grid snap.
- Zoom in / zoom out.
- Undo / redo.
- Cut/copy/paste.
- Multiple diagram elements select and drag’n drop.
- Supports diagram tool change with mouse scroll button.
- Maximum drawing space by hiding tools bar.
- Cross format documents. Diagrams are saved in HTML.
- Export diagram image to clipboard.
- Export diagram image to file.
- Printing.
- Restores workspace on startup with opened documents.
- Cross-platform support.
Website: violet.sourceforge.net
Support: SourceForge Project Page, GitHub Code Repository
Developer: Cay S. Horstmann, Alexandre de Pellegrin and many contributors
License: GNU General Public License v2.0

Violet is written in Java. Learn Java with our recommended free books and free tutorials.
Related Software
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|---|---|
| Eclipse Papyrus | Edit models based on UML and related languages |
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| Mermaid | Generate diagrams from markdown-like text |
| Umple | Create UML models textually |
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| Umbrello | UML Modeller based on KDE technology |
| UMLet | Java-based UML tool |
| JetUML | Sketch software design ideas with a minimum of fuss |
| Violet | Designed for people who need to produce simple UML diagrams |
| Dia | GTK+ based diagram creation software |
| ArgoUML | UML modeling tool |
| crystal-facet-uml | Desktop UML and SysML modeling application |
| UML Designer | UML tool based on Sirius and Eclipse |
Read our verdict in the software roundup.
Explore our comprehensive directory of recommended free and open source software. Our carefully curated collection spans every major software category.This directory is part of our ongoing series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. It features hundreds of detailed reviews, along with open source alternatives to proprietary solutions from major corporations such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. You’ll also find interesting projects to try, hardware coverage, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Discovered a useful open source Linux program that we haven’t covered yet? Let us know by completing this form. |

