NetBeans and Themes
Builds newer than NetBeans 3.4 release include an improved XML based theming mechanism. If you are running NetBeans using the Java look and feel, you can use XML to control almost any aspect of the look and feel.

For older builds please see the original NetBeans Theme Proposal.

Theme support builds on the support for theme classes in the Java Look and Feel, by allowing your theme to be defined in XML. But it goes further than that. Swing uses string-names and a map to define a lot of things in more detail than themes cover, via the class UIDefaults.

NetBeans' theme support allows you to redefine all properties of MetalTheme, but additionally, it allows you to replace any object in UIDefaults. NetBeans' theme support allows you to define the following types of objects:

Colors, Metric (integer), String, Font, Boolean, Dimension, Inset, Border

all of which types live in UIDefaults.

Using theme support with non-Metal look and feels
Starting with NetBeans 3.6, there is experimental support for using themes with look and feels other than Metal. Some things will work, some won't, depending on what keys and values the look and feel in question actually uses out of UIDefaults. To enable it on non-Metal look and feels, add the following to your ide.cfg (or start netbeans from the command line with this argument):

-J-Dnetbeans.useTheme=true

How to use themes
Create a file following the instructions below called themes.xml and put it in the system/ subdirectory of your user directory (for example, $HOME/.netbeans/dev/system/. An example file can be found here.

Mix and match themes
NetBeans allows you to define more than one theme in your theme file. The first line in the file (after the obligatory <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>) should define the themeset. A themeset is a collection of themes (you'll really never need more than one):

<themeset active="Tan,SmallScrollBars,LargerFonts">

Notice the "active" attribute. It is a list of references to themes that can be found inside the themeset tags. Different themes can be turned on and off by editing this line, so you can create separate themes for different aspects of the environment, such as sizes of scrollbars, sizes of fonts, and so forth, and apply different combinations of them for different environments.

Note:If two themes override the same value, whichever one occurs later in the file will be kept and the other discarded.

NetBeans-specific UIManager keys
NetBeans defines some keys of its own which are used in UIDefaults, and may be customized. They are listed at the end of this document. Structure of a theme
Each entry starts by saying what it is, such as <color key="primary1" r="170" g="144" b="119"/>

Each entry has an attribute called "key". This should be an exact match to either one of the properties of MetalTheme (e.g. primary1 - don't capitalize the first letter!) or an arbitrary string used in UIDefaults. If you specify a string that doesn't exist in UIDefaults, it simply create an object in UIDefaults that nothing uses and map it to that string.

Warning: Use the right classes for things (see table below). If you supply a font resource where there should be a color resource, NetBeans will probably not run. Fortunately, the format is simple.

The rest of the attributes are specific to what type of entry it is. For example, a color will have r, g and b attributes for the red, green and blue values of the color.

Example theme file

<theme name="Tan">
    <!--below are properties defined in MetalTheme-->
  <color key="primary1" r="170" g="144" b="119"/>
  <color key="primary2" r="190" g="170" b="140"/>
  <color key="primary3" r="250" g="240" b="210"/>
  <color key="secondary1" r="198" g="183" b="157"/>
  <color key="secondary2" r="180" g="162" b="145"/>
  <color key="secondary3" r="240" g="218" b="190"/>
  <color key="black" r="10" g="10" b="60"/>  
  <color key="white" r="231" g="207" b="181"/>
  <color key="window" r="231" g="207" b="181"/>
  <color key="controlText" r="190" g="170" b="140"/>
  <color key="info" r="190" g="170" b="140"/>
  <color key="controlDkShadow" r="190" g="170" b="140"/>

    <!--these are some specific colors stored in UIDefaults-->
  <color key="ScrollBar.darkShadow" r="190" g="170" b="140"/>
  <color key="MenuItem.acceleratorForeground" r="130" g="100" b="35"/>
  <color key="Menu.acceleratorForeground" r="130" g="100" b="35"/>
  <color key="Menu.selectionBackground" r="240" g="218" b="190"/>
 </theme>

 <theme name="SmallScrollBars">
  <metric key="ScrollBar.width" value="12"/>
 </theme>

<theme name="SmallTabs">
    <metric key="TabbedPane.textIconGap" value="2"/>
    <insets key="TabbedPane.tabInsets" top="0" bottom="1" left="3" right="1"/>
</theme>

 <theme name="LargerFonts">
    <!--below are properties defined in MetalTheme-->
  <font key="systemfont" name="Dialog" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="userFont" name="Dialog" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="subFont" name="Dialog" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="menuFont" name="SansSerif" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="windowTitleFont" name="SansSerif" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="controlFont" name="SansSerif" style="Plain" size="12"/>

    <!--these are some specific fonts stored in UIDefaults-->
  <font key="List.font" name="SansSerif" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="Tree.font" name="SansSerif" style="Plain" size="12"/>
  <font key="Panel.font" name="SansSerif" style="Plain" size="12"/>
 </theme>

Things you can change in UIDefaults
Below is a list of the attributes that you can set in UIDefaults using Themes. These attributes are taken from the defaults in MetalLookAndFeel, and may vary for other look and feels. It is always up to the Look and Feel implementation to use or not use the contents of UIDefaults. Note that GTK/Synth look and feels tend not to use UIDefaults at all.

Booleans Example: <boolean value="false"/> CheckBoxMenuItem.borderPainted true Menu.borderPainted true MenuItem.borderPainted true RadioButtonMenuItem.borderPainted true ScrollBar.allowsAbsolutePositioning true ToolTip.hideAccelerator false Tree.changeSelectionWithFocus true Tree.drawsFocusBorderAroundIcon false Tree.scrollsOnExpand true Dimensions Example: <dimension key="someDimension" width="5" height="5"/> ColorChooser.swatchesRecentSwatchSize width=10 height=10 ColorChooser.swatchesSwatchSize width=10 height=10 OptionPane.minimumSize width=262 height=90 ScrollBar.maximumThumbSize width=4096 height=4096 ScrollBar.minimumThumbSize width=8 height=8 Spinner.arrowButtonSize width=16 height=5 ToolBar.separatorSize width=10 height=10 Insets Example: <insets key="TabbedPane.tabInsets" top="0" bottom="1" left="3" right="1"/> Button.margin top=2 left=14 right=14 bottom=2 CheckBox.margin top=2 left=2 right=2 bottom=2 CheckBoxMenuItem.margin top=2 left=2 right=2 bottom=2 EditorPane.margin top=3 left=3 right=3 bottom=3 FormattedTextField.margin top=0 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 Menu.margin top=2 left=2 right=2 bottom=2 MenuItem.margin top=2 left=2 right=2 bottom=2 PasswordField.margin top=0 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 RadioButton.margin top=2 left=2 right=2 bottom=2 RadioButtonMenuItem.margin top=2 left=2 right=2 bottom=2 Slider.focusInsets top=0 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 TabbedPane.contentBorderInsets top=2 left=2 right=3 bottom=3 TabbedPane.selectedTabPadInsets top=2 left=2 right=1 bottom=2 TabbedPane.tabAreaInsets top=4 left=2 right=6 bottom=0 TabbedPane.tabInsets top=0 left=9 right=9 bottom=1 TextArea.margin top=0 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 TextField.margin top=0 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 TextPane.margin top=3 left=3 right=3 bottom=3 ToggleButton.margin top=2 left=14 right=14 bottom=2 Metrics Example: <metric value="5"/> Button.textIconGap 4 Button.textShiftOffset 0 CheckBox.textIconGap 4 CheckBox.textShiftOffset 0 ColorChooser.rgbBlueMnemonic 66 ColorChooser.rgbGreenMnemonic 78 ColorChooser.rgbRedMnemonic 68 DesktopIcon.width 160 EditorPane.caretBlinkRate 500 FileChooser.cancelButtonMnemonic 67 FileChooser.directoryOpenButtonMnemonic 79 FileChooser.fileNameLabelMnemonic 78 FileChooser.filesOfTypeLabelMnemonic 84 FileChooser.helpButtonMnemonic 72 FileChooser.lookInLabelMnemonic 73 FileChooser.openButtonMnemonic 79 FileChooser.saveButtonMnemonic 83 FileChooser.updateButtonMnemonic 85 FormattedTextField.caretBlinkRate 500 InternalFrame.paletteTitleHeight 11 Menu.menuPopupOffsetX 0 Menu.menuPopupOffsetY 0 Menu.submenuPopupOffsetX -4 Menu.submenuPopupOffsetY -3 OptionPane.buttonClickThreshhold 500 PasswordField.caretBlinkRate 500 ProgressBar.cellLength 1 ProgressBar.cellSpacing 0 ProgressBar.cycleTime 3000 ProgressBar.repaintInterval 50 RadioButton.textIconGap 4 RadioButton.textShiftOffset 0 ScrollBar.width 17 Slider.majorTickLength 6 Slider.trackWidth 7 SplitPane.dividerSize 10 TabbedPane.tabRunOverlay 2 TabbedPane.textIconGap 4 TextArea.caretBlinkRate 500 TextField.caretBlinkRate 500 TextPane.caretBlinkRate 500 ToggleButton.textIconGap 4 ToggleButton.textShiftOffset 0 Tree.leftChildIndent 7 Tree.rightChildIndent 13 Tree.rowHeight 0 Borders Example: <lineborder key="menubar.border" r="0" g="255" b="0"/> <bevelborder key="PopupMenu.border" type="lowered"/> <emptyborder key="ScrollPane.border" top="0" bottom="0" left="0" right="0"/> <etchedborder key="ToolTip.border" type="raised"/> Button.border CompoundBorderUIResource CheckBox.border CompoundBorderUIResource CheckBoxMenuItem.border MenuItemBorder DesktopIcon.border CompoundBorderUIResource EditorPane.border MarginBorder FormattedTextField.border CompoundBorderUIResource InternalFrame.border InternalFrameBorder InternalFrame.optionDialogBorder OptionDialogBorder InternalFrame.paletteBorder PaletteBorder List.focusCellHighlightBorder LineBorderUIResource Menu.border MenuItemBorder MenuBar.border MenuBarBorder MenuItem.border MenuItemBorder OptionPane.border EmptyBorder - insets: top=10 left=10 right=10 bottom=12 OptionPane.buttonAreaBorder EmptyBorder - insets: top=6 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 OptionPane.messageAreaBorder EmptyBorder - insets: top=0 left=0 right=0 bottom=0 PasswordField.border CompoundBorderUIResource PopupMenu.border PopupMenuBorder ProgressBar.border LineBorderUIResource RadioButton.border CompoundBorderUIResource RadioButtonMenuItem.border MenuItemBorder RootPane.colorChooserDialogBorder QuestionDialogBorder RootPane.errorDialogBorder ErrorDialogBorder RootPane.fileChooserDialogBorder QuestionDialogBorder RootPane.frameBorder FrameBorder RootPane.informationDialogBorder DialogBorder RootPane.plainDialogBorder DialogBorder RootPane.questionDialogBorder QuestionDialogBorder RootPane.warningDialogBorder WarningDialogBorder ScrollPane.border ScrollPaneBorder Spinner.border BevelBorder lowered SplitPane.border SplitPaneBorder SplitPaneDivider.border SplitPaneDividerBorder Table.focusCellHighlightBorder LineBorderUIResource Table.scrollPaneBorder ScrollPaneBorder TableHeader.cellBorder TableHeaderBorder TextArea.border MarginBorder TextField.border CompoundBorderUIResource TextPane.border MarginBorder TitledBorder.border LineBorderUIResource ToggleButton.border CompoundBorderUIResource ToolBar.border ToolBarBorder ToolTip.border LineBorderUIResource ToolTip.borderInactive LineBorderUIResource Tree.editorBorder LineBorderUIResource Fonts Example: <font key="systemfont" name="Dialog" style="Plain" size="11"/> Button.font dialog size=11 style=0 CheckBox.font dialog size=11 style=0 CheckBoxMenuItem.acceleratorFont dialog size=10 style=0 CheckBoxMenuItem.font dialog size=11 style=0 ColorChooser.font dialog size=12 style=0 ComboBox.font dialog size=11 style=0 DesktopIcon.font dialog size=11 style=0 EditorPane.font dialog size=11 style=0 FormattedTextField.font dialog size=11 style=0 InternalFrame.titleFont dialog size=11 style=0 Label.font dialog size=11 style=0 List.font dialog size=11 style=0 Menu.acceleratorFont dialog size=10 style=0 Menu.font dialog size=11 style=0 MenuBar.font dialog size=11 style=0 MenuItem.acceleratorFont dialog size=10 style=0 MenuItem.font dialog size=11 style=0 OptionPane.font dialog size=12 style=0 Panel.font dialog size=12 style=0 PasswordField.font dialog size=11 style=0 PopupMenu.font dialog size=12 style=0 ProgressBar.font dialog size=11 style=0 RadioButton.font dialog size=11 style=0 RadioButtonMenuItem.acceleratorFont dialog size=10 style=0 RadioButtonMenuItem.font dialog size=11 style=0 ScrollPane.font dialog size=12 style=0 Spinner.font monospaced size=12 style=0 TabbedPane.font dialog size=11 style=0 Table.font dialog size=11 style=0 TableHeader.font dialog size=11 style=0 TextArea.font dialog size=11 style=0 TextField.font dialog size=11 style=0 TextPane.font dialog size=11 style=0 TitledBorder.font dialog size=11 style=0 ToggleButton.font dialog size=11 style=0 ToolBar.font dialog size=11 style=0 ToolTip.font dialog size=11 style=0 Tree.font dialog size=11 style=0 Viewport.font dialog size=12 style=0 Colors Example: <color key="primary1" r="0" g="0" b="255"/> Button.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Button.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 Button.disabledText red=153 green=153 blue=153 Button.focus red=153 green=153 blue=204 Button.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Button.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 Button.light red=255 green=255 blue=255 Button.select red=153 green=153 blue=153 Button.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 CheckBox.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 CheckBox.disabledText red=153 green=153 blue=153 CheckBox.focus red=153 green=153 blue=204 CheckBox.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 CheckBoxMenuItem.acceleratorForeground red=102 green=102 blue=153 CheckBoxMenuItem.acceleratorSelectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 CheckBoxMenuItem.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 CheckBoxMenuItem.disabledForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 CheckBoxMenuItem.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 CheckBoxMenuItem.selectionBackground red=153 green=153 blue=204 CheckBoxMenuItem.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Checkbox.select red=153 green=153 blue=153 ColorChooser.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ColorChooser.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ColorChooser.swatchesDefaultRecentColor red=204 green=204 blue=204 ComboBox.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ComboBox.buttonBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ComboBox.buttonDarkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 ComboBox.buttonHighlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 ComboBox.buttonShadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 ComboBox.disabledBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ComboBox.disabledForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 ComboBox.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ComboBox.listBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ComboBox.listForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ComboBox.selectionBackground red=153 green=153 blue=204 ComboBox.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Desktop.background red=153 green=153 blue=204 DesktopIcon.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 DesktopIcon.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 EditorPane.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 EditorPane.caretForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 EditorPane.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 EditorPane.inactiveForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 EditorPane.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 EditorPane.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 FormattedTextField.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 FormattedTextField.caretForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 FormattedTextField.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 FormattedTextField.inactiveBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 FormattedTextField.inactiveForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 FormattedTextField.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 FormattedTextField.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 InternalFrame.activeTitleBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 InternalFrame.activeTitleForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 InternalFrame.borderColor red=204 green=204 blue=204 InternalFrame.borderDarkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 InternalFrame.borderHighlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 InternalFrame.borderLight red=255 green=255 blue=255 InternalFrame.borderShadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 InternalFrame.inactiveTitleBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 InternalFrame.inactiveTitleForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Label.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Label.disabledForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 Label.disabledShadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 Label.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 List.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 List.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 List.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 List.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Menu.acceleratorForeground red=102 green=102 blue=153 Menu.acceleratorSelectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Menu.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Menu.disabledForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 Menu.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Menu.selectionBackground red=153 green=153 blue=204 Menu.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 MenuBar.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 MenuBar.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 MenuBar.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 MenuBar.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 MenuItem.acceleratorForeground red=102 green=102 blue=153 MenuItem.acceleratorSelectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 MenuItem.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 MenuItem.disabledForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 MenuItem.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 MenuItem.selectionBackground red=153 green=153 blue=204 MenuItem.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 OptionPane.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 OptionPane.errorDialog.border.background red=153 green=51 blue=51 OptionPane.errorDialog.titlePane.background red=255 green=153 blue=153 OptionPane.errorDialog.titlePane.foreground red=51 green=0 blue=0 OptionPane.errorDialog.titlePane.shadow red=204 green=102 blue=102 OptionPane.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 OptionPane.messageForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 OptionPane.questionDialog.border.background red=51 green=102 blue=51 OptionPane.questionDialog.titlePane.background red=153 green=204 blue=153 OptionPane.questionDialog.titlePane.foreground red=0 green=51 blue=0 OptionPane.questionDialog.titlePane.shadow red=102 green=153 blue=102 OptionPane.warningDialog.border.background red=153 green=102 blue=51 OptionPane.warningDialog.titlePane.background red=255 green=204 blue=153 OptionPane.warningDialog.titlePane.foreground red=102 green=51 blue=0 OptionPane.warningDialog.titlePane.shadow red=204 green=153 blue=102 Panel.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Panel.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 PasswordField.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 PasswordField.caretForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 PasswordField.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 PasswordField.inactiveBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 PasswordField.inactiveForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 PasswordField.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 PasswordField.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 PopupMenu.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 PopupMenu.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ProgressBar.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ProgressBar.backgroundHighlight red=204 green=204 blue=204 ProgressBar.foreground red=153 green=153 blue=204 ProgressBar.foregroundHighlight red=153 green=153 blue=204 ProgressBar.selectionBackground red=102 green=102 blue=153 ProgressBar.selectionForeground red=204 green=204 blue=204 RadioButton.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 RadioButton.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 RadioButton.disabledText red=153 green=153 blue=153 RadioButton.focus red=153 green=153 blue=204 RadioButton.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 RadioButton.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 RadioButton.light red=255 green=255 blue=255 RadioButton.select red=153 green=153 blue=153 RadioButton.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 RadioButtonMenuItem.acceleratorForeground red=102 green=102 blue=153 RadioButtonMenuItem.acceleratorSelectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 RadioButtonMenuItem.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 RadioButtonMenuItem.disabledForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 RadioButtonMenuItem.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 RadioButtonMenuItem.selectionBackground red=153 green=153 blue=204 RadioButtonMenuItem.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ScrollBar.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ScrollBar.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 ScrollBar.foreground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ScrollBar.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 ScrollBar.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 ScrollBar.thumb red=153 green=153 blue=204 ScrollBar.thumbDarkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 ScrollBar.thumbHighlight red=204 green=204 blue=255 ScrollBar.thumbShadow red=102 green=102 blue=153 ScrollBar.track red=204 green=204 blue=204 ScrollBar.trackHighlight red=102 green=102 blue=102 ScrollPane.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ScrollPane.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Separator.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 Separator.foreground red=102 green=102 blue=153 Separator.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 Separator.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 Slider.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Slider.focus red=153 green=153 blue=204 Slider.foreground red=153 green=153 blue=204 Slider.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 Slider.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 Spinner.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Spinner.foreground red=204 green=204 blue=204 SplitPane.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 SplitPane.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 SplitPane.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 SplitPane.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 TabbedPane.background red=153 green=153 blue=153 TabbedPane.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 TabbedPane.focus red=102 green=102 blue=153 TabbedPane.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TabbedPane.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 TabbedPane.light red=204 green=204 blue=204 TabbedPane.selectHighlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 TabbedPane.selected red=204 green=204 blue=204 TabbedPane.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 TabbedPane.tabAreaBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 Table.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 Table.focusCellBackground red=255 green=255 blue=255 Table.focusCellForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Table.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Table.gridColor red=153 green=153 blue=153 Table.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 Table.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TableHeader.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 TableHeader.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextArea.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 TextArea.caretForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextArea.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextArea.inactiveForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 TextArea.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 TextArea.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextField.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 TextField.caretForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextField.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 TextField.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextField.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 TextField.inactiveBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 TextField.inactiveForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 TextField.light red=255 green=255 blue=255 TextField.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 TextField.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextField.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 TextPane.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 TextPane.caretForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextPane.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TextPane.inactiveForeground red=153 green=153 blue=153 TextPane.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 TextPane.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 TitledBorder.titleColor red=0 green=0 blue=0 ToggleButton.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToggleButton.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 ToggleButton.disabledBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToggleButton.disabledSelectedBackground red=153 green=153 blue=153 ToggleButton.disabledSelectedText red=102 green=102 blue=102 ToggleButton.disabledText red=153 green=153 blue=153 ToggleButton.focus red=153 green=153 blue=204 ToggleButton.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ToggleButton.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 ToggleButton.light red=255 green=255 blue=255 ToggleButton.select red=153 green=153 blue=153 ToggleButton.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 ToggleButton.text red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToolBar.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToolBar.darkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 ToolBar.dockingBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToolBar.dockingForeground red=102 green=102 blue=153 ToolBar.floatingBackground red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToolBar.floatingForeground red=204 green=204 blue=255 ToolBar.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ToolBar.highlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 ToolBar.light red=255 green=255 blue=255 ToolBar.shadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 ToolTip.background red=204 green=204 blue=255 ToolTip.backgroundInactive red=204 green=204 blue=204 ToolTip.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 ToolTip.foregroundInactive red=102 green=102 blue=102 Tree.background red=255 green=255 blue=255 Tree.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Tree.hash red=204 green=204 blue=255 Tree.line red=204 green=204 blue=255 Tree.selectionBackground red=204 green=204 blue=255 Tree.selectionBorderColor red=153 green=153 blue=204 Tree.selectionForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Tree.textBackground red=255 green=255 blue=255 Tree.textForeground red=0 green=0 blue=0 Viewport.background red=204 green=204 blue=204 Viewport.foreground red=0 green=0 blue=0 activeCaption red=204 green=204 blue=255 activeCaptionBorder red=153 green=153 blue=204 activeCaptionText red=0 green=0 blue=0 control red=204 green=204 blue=204 controlDkShadow red=102 green=102 blue=102 controlHighlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 controlLtHighlight red=255 green=255 blue=255 controlShadow red=153 green=153 blue=153 controlText red=0 green=0 blue=0 desktop red=153 green=153 blue=204 inactiveCaption red=204 green=204 blue=204 inactiveCaptionBorder red=153 green=153 blue=153 inactiveCaptionText red=0 green=0 blue=0 info red=204 green=204 blue=255 infoText red=0 green=0 blue=0 menu red=204 green=204 blue=204 menuText red=0 green=0 blue=0 scrollbar red=204 green=204 blue=204 text red=255 green=255 blue=255 textHighlight red=204 green=204 blue=255 textHighlightText red=0 green=0 blue=0 textInactiveText red=153 green=153 blue=153 textText red=0 green=0 blue=0 window red=255 green=255 blue=255 windowBorder red=204 green=204 blue=204 windowText red=0 green=0 blue=0 Strings Example: <string key="someString" value"value"/> ButtonUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalButtonUI CheckBoxMenuItem.commandSound sounds/MenuItemCommand.wav CheckBoxMenuItemUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicCheckBoxMenuItemUI CheckBoxUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalCheckBoxUI ColorChooserUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicColorChooserUI ComboBoxUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalComboBoxUI DesktopIconUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalDesktopIconUI DesktopPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicDesktopPaneUI EditorPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicEditorPaneUI FileChooserUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalFileChooserUI FormattedTextFieldUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicFormattedTextFieldUI HelpContentViewerUI javax.help.plaf.basic.BasicContentViewerUI HelpIndexNavigatorUI javax.help.plaf.basic.BasicIndexNavigatorUI HelpSearchNavigatorUI javax.help.plaf.basic.BasicSearchNavigatorUI HelpTOCNavigatorUI javax.help.plaf.basic.BasicTOCNavigatorUI HelpUI javax.help.plaf.basic.BasicHelpUI InternalFrame.closeSound sounds/FrameClose.wav InternalFrame.maximizeSound sounds/FrameMaximize.wav InternalFrame.minimizeSound sounds/FrameMinimize.wav InternalFrame.restoreDownSound sounds/FrameRestoreDown.wav InternalFrame.restoreUpSound sounds/FrameRestoreUp.wav InternalFrameUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalInternalFrameUI LabelUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalLabelUI ListUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicListUI MenuBarUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicMenuBarUI MenuItem.acceleratorDelimiter - MenuItem.commandSound sounds/MenuItemCommand.wav MenuItemUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicMenuItemUI MenuUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicMenuUI OptionPane.errorSound sounds/OptionPaneError.wav OptionPane.informationSound sounds/OptionPaneInformation.wav OptionPane.questionSound sounds/OptionPaneQuestion.wav OptionPane.warningSound sounds/OptionPaneWarning.wav OptionPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicOptionPaneUI PanelUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicPanelUI PasswordFieldUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicPasswordFieldUI PopupMenu.popupSound sounds/PopupMenuPopup.wav PopupMenuSeparatorUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalPopupMenuSeparatorUI PopupMenuUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicPopupMenuUI ProgressBarUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalProgressBarUI RadioButtonMenuItem.commandSound sounds/MenuItemCommand.wav RadioButtonMenuItemUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicRadioButtonMenuItemUI RadioButtonUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalRadioButtonUI RootPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalRootPaneUI ScrollBarUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalScrollBarUI ScrollPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalScrollPaneUI SeparatorUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalSeparatorUI SliderUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalSliderUI SpinnerUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicSpinnerUI SplitPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalSplitPaneUI TabbedPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalTabbedPaneUI TableHeaderUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTableHeaderUI TableUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTableUI TextAreaUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTextAreaUI TextFieldUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalTextFieldUI TextPaneUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicTextPaneUI ToggleButtonUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalToggleButtonUI ToolBarSeparatorUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicToolBarSeparatorUI ToolBarUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalToolBarUI ToolTipUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalToolTipUI TreeUI javax.swing.plaf.metal.MetalTreeUI ViewportUI javax.swing.plaf.basic.BasicViewportUI

NetBeans-specific UIManager keys
Note that all of these are subject to change/removal. The following is a listing for NetBeans 3.6:

NetBeans UIManager keys Key What is it Type nb.output.selectionBackground Background color for selected errors in the output window Color nb.hyperlink.foreground Foreground color for hyperlinks in the output window. Color nb.output.background General background color for the output window Color Tree.altbackground Alternate background for every other row in the property sheet Color PropSheet.setBackground Color for expandable property sets in the property sheet Color PropSheet.selectedSetBackground Color for expandable property sets in the property sheet when selected Color PropSheet.setForeground Font color for expandable property sets in the property sheet Color nb.errorColor Error indication color in the property sheet and other places Color PropSheet.selectedSetForeground Font color for expandable property sets in the property sheet when selected Color netbeans.ps.iconmargin Margin to the left of the expansion handle icon in the property sheet Integer netbeans.ps.rowheight Fixed row height for rows in the property sheet. If not set, it will be calculated from the font size Integer