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How to draw two JPanels on top of each other?

I am currently working on a N-Body simulation and I have made particles move on a black screen. My current problem is that there is no way of controlling it.
My plan:
Each color stands for a different JPanel. The blue one should contain the buttons and text fields, the red one the viewport.
But with my small knowledge in Java, I didn't succeed in creating this. I first tried with setBounds and setLayoutManager(null), in vain.
My structure goes like that:
Window class extends JFrame
Simulation class creating blueJPanel class (extends JPanel) and redJPanel,
adds them to the window.
But this is garbage code... So how would you draw these simple panels on top of each other?

Oracle has a helpful tutorial, Creating a GUI With Swing. Skip the Learning Swing with the NetBeans IDE section. Pay particular attention to the Laying Out Components Within a Container section.
As I said in my comment, you create two JPanels. Here's an example.
Here's the complete runable code to create this example.
import java.awt.BorderLayout;
import java.awt.Color;
import java.awt.Dimension;
import javax.swing.BorderFactory;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
import javax.swing.SwingUtilities;
public class BorderLayoutExampleGUI implements Runnable {
public static void main(String[] args) {
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new BorderLayoutExampleGUI());
}
#Override
public void run() {
JFrame frame = new JFrame("BorderLayout Example");
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
frame.add(createButtonPanel(), BorderLayout.NORTH);
frame.add(createMainPanel(), BorderLayout.CENTER);
frame.pack();
frame.setLocationByPlatform(true);
frame.setVisible(true);
}
private JPanel createButtonPanel() {
JPanel panel = new JPanel();
panel.setBorder(BorderFactory.createEmptyBorder(0, 5, 5, 5));
panel.setPreferredSize(new Dimension(600, 100));
panel.setBackground(Color.blue);
// Add the buttons and text fields
return panel;
}
private JPanel createMainPanel() {
JPanel panel = new JPanel();
panel.setBorder(BorderFactory.createEmptyBorder(0, 5, 5, 5));
panel.setPreferredSize(new Dimension(600, 380));
panel.setBackground(Color.red);
// Add the drawing code
return panel;
}
}

JButton and JTextField

What's wrong? ImageIcon and the frame's size are working properly.
But the JTextField and the JButton aren't.
I need the solution.
import javax.swing.*;
import javax.swing.ImageIcon;
import java.awt.event.ActionEvent;
import java.awt.event.ActionListener;
public class Frame {
public static void main(String[] args) {
JFrame frame = new JFrame();
frame.setTitle("Alkalmazás");
frame.setVisible(true);
frame.setSize(500,500);
frame.setResizable(false);
JTextField field = new JTextField();
field.setBounds(40,250, 300,35);
JButton button = new JButton(new ImageIcon("table.png"));
button.setBounds(40,400, 250,25);
button.addActionListener(new ActionListener() {
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
tf.setText(""something);
}
});
frame.add(field);
frame.add(button);
}
}

You didn't mention what's "not working properly", but there are a few errors with your code:
Don't call your class Frame, it may confuse you or others about java.awt.Frame, something that may work would be MyFrame
Right now all your class is inside the main method and it's not placed inside the Event Dispatch Thread (EDT), to fix this, create an instance of your class and call a method createAndShowGUI (or whatever you want to name it) inside SwingUtilities.invokeLater()
For Example:
public static void main(String args[]) {
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new MyFrame()::createAndShowGUI)
}
Or if using Java 7 or lower, use the code inside this answer in point #2.
setVisible(true) should be the last line in your code, otherwise you may find some visual glitches that may be resolved until you move your mouse above your window or something that triggers the call to repaint() of your components.
Instead of calling setSize(...) directly, you should override getPreferredSize(...) of your JPanel and then call pack() on your JFrame, see this question and the answers in it: Should I avoid the use of set(Preferred|Maximum|Minimum)Size methods in Java Swing?
You're adding 2 components to the CENTER of BorderLayout, which is a JFrame's default layout manager, there are other layout managers and you can combine them to make complex GUI's.
setBounds(...) might mean that you're using null-layout, which might seem like the easiest way to create complex layouts, however you will find yourself in situations like this one if you take that approach, it's better to let Swing do the calculations for you while you use layout managers. For more, read: Why is it frowned upon to use a null layout in Swing?
With all the above tips now in mind, you may have a code similar to this one:
import java.awt.Dimension;
import java.awt.event.ActionEvent;
import java.awt.event.ActionListener;
import javax.swing.BoxLayout;
import javax.swing.JButton;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
import javax.swing.JTextField;
import javax.swing.SwingUtilities;
public class MyFrame {
private JFrame frame;
private JPanel pane;
private JTextField field;
private JButton button;
public static void main(String[] args) {
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new MyFrame()::createAndShowGUI);
}
private void createAndShowGUI() {
frame = new JFrame("Alkalmazás");
pane = new JPanel() {
#Override
public Dimension getPreferredSize() {
return new Dimension(100, 100);
}
};
pane.setLayout(new BoxLayout(pane, BoxLayout.PAGE_AXIS));
field = new JTextField(10);
button = new JButton("Click me");
button.addActionListener(new ActionListener() {
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
field.setText("something");
}
});
pane.add(field);
pane.add(button);
frame.add(pane);
frame.setResizable(false);
frame.pack();
frame.setVisible(true);
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
}
}
Now you have an output similar to this one:
What about you want the JTextField to have a more "normal" size? Like this one:
You'll have to embed field inside another JPanel (with FlowLayout (the default layout manager of JPanel)), and then add that second JPanel to pane, I'm not writing the code for that as I'm leaving that as an exercise to you so you learn how to use multiple layout managers

JTextField is blanking out my JPanels

I am attempting to learn more about creating more dynamic GUI's. I am hoping to add different panels with different content and as you press buttons on one main panel, it changes the adjacent panels. I have added two panels and some buttons and when I test the program, it displays correctly. The problem is when I add a JTextField (or JTextArea) the panels are blank and there are no buttons. The strange thing is I haven't added the JTextField to either panel. I have only created a global variable. If I comment it out, the program runs correctly. Am I missing something very simple?
Here is the gameWindow class that has the JTextField
package rpgcreator;
import java.awt.Color;
import java.awt.FlowLayout;
import java.awt.GridLayout;
import javax.swing.JButton;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
import javax.swing.JTextArea;
import javax.swing.JTextField;
class gameWindow extends JPanel {
JPanel startWindowPanel;
JPanel settingsPanel;
JPanel characterPanel;
JPanel scenarioPanel;
JPanel mapPanel;
JButton CharacterButton = new JButton("Create your character");
JButton StoryButton = new JButton("Choose your Story line");
JButton MapButton = new JButton("Choose your World");
//JTextField nameField = new JTextField(15); //comment or uncomment to see issue
public gameWindow() {
setLayout(new GridLayout(0,2,5,0));
startWindowPanel = new JPanel(new FlowLayout());
settingsPanel = new JPanel(new GridLayout(2,1));
startWindowPanel.setBackground(Color.blue);
settingsPanel.setBackground(Color.black);
startWindowPanel.add(MapButton);
startWindowPanel.add(StoryButton);
startWindowPanel.add(CharacterButton);
add(startWindowPanel);
add(settingsPanel);
}
}
Here is main
package rpgcreator;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
public class RPGCreator extends JFrame{
private static void mainWindow(){
RPGCreator mainwindow = new RPGCreator();
mainwindow.setSize(1200, 800);
mainwindow.setResizable(false);
mainwindow.setLocationRelativeTo(null);
mainwindow.setTitle("RPG Creator");
mainwindow.setVisible(true);
mainwindow.add(new gameWindow());
mainwindow.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
// TODO code application logic here
mainWindow();
}
}

setVisible should go at the end. You're currently setting visible to true, and then adding a panel.
mainwindow.setVisible(true);
mainwindow.add(new gameWindow());
Put setVisible at the end after setDeaultCLoseOperation

I'm not entirely sure why it does it, maybe someone else can explain.
What I do know, is I usually call pack() which seems to make your problem go away.
private static void mainWindow(){
final RPGCreator mainwindow = new RPGCreator();
mainwindow.setMinimumSize(new Dimension(1200, 800));
mainwindow.setResizable(false);
mainwindow.setTitle("RPG Creator");
mainwindow.setVisible(true);
mainwindow.add(new gameWindow());
mainwindow.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
mainwindow.pack(); //This usually goes after you've added all of your components
mainwindow.setLocationRelativeTo(null);
}
Some notes:
I had to change to mainwindow.setMinimumSize(new Dimension(1200, 800)); to avoid the frame looking squashed. Although I would usually let the layout manager deal with the sizes of things.
Call setLocationRelativeTo(null) after you call pack() so that it has the desired effect. Again not sure why, but I've learnt that through some hardship.

How to create an hello world in Java Swing? What is wrong in my code?

I am studying Java Swing and I have some problem with the following simple code:
package com.techub.exeute;
import java.awt.BorderLayout;
import java.awt.Color;
import java.awt.Dimension;
import java.awt.Font;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JLabel;
import javax.swing.SwingConstants;
public class Main{
public static void main(String[] args) {
JFrame frame = new JFrame("FrameDemo");
frame.setMinimumSize(new Dimension(800, 400));
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
JLabel myLabel = new JLabel("Hello World !!!", SwingConstants.CENTER);
myLabel.setFont(new Font("Serif", Font.BOLD, 22));
myLabel.setBackground(Color.blue);
myLabel.setOpaque(true);
myLabel.setPreferredSize(new Dimension(100, 80));
frame.getContentPane().add(myLabel, BorderLayout.NORTH);
}
}
My idea is to create a JFrame object and insert into it an Hello World JLabel object settings some property.
I do it into the main() method. The problem is that when I execute the program I don't see anything !!! Why? What is wrong in my code?
Tnx
Andrea

You are creating the frame but you are not displaying it. Call
frame.setVisible(true);
to display it.
Another thing: you should not manipulate GUI components in the main thread. Instead, create a new method for creating the frame and setting up the components, and run that method in the event dispatch thread, like in the example from the official tutorial:
import javax.swing.*;
public class HelloWorldSwing {
private static void createAndShowGUI() {
JFrame frame = new JFrame("HelloWorldSwing");
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
JLabel label = new JLabel("Hello World");
frame.getContentPane().add(label);
frame.pack();
frame.setVisible(true);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
javax.swing.SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
createAndShowGUI();
}
});
}
}

Just add
frame.setVisible(true);
to your code
See the steps to Creating and Showing Java Swing Frames
//1. Create the frame.
JFrame frame = new JFrame("FrameDemo");
//2. Optional: What happens when the frame closes?
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
//3. Create components and put them in the frame.
//...create emptyLabel...
frame.getContentPane().add(emptyLabel, BorderLayout.CENTER);
//4. Size the frame.
frame.pack();
//5. Show it.
frame.setVisible(true);
You missed out #5

You need a
frame.setVisible(true);
call in your code.
As others mentioned you should not use the main Thread for gui operations. I suggest you should refer to the official tutorials of SWING, they are rather helpful and you'll see examples there for proper threading.

keep this line in your method
frame.setVisible(true);

Java Swing: problems with width

I have problems with understanding the behavior of my application. I want to create a simple window (1000x700px), divided into two parts (250px and 750px width respectively). I tried the following code:
import java.awt.Color;
import java.awt.Dimension;
import java.awt.FlowLayout;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
public class Example extends JFrame
{
private static final long serialVersionUID = 1L;
public Example()
{
this.setSize(1000, 700);
this.setTitle("Example");
this.setResizable(false);
this.setLayout(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.LEFT, 0, 0));
JPanel navigation_panel_wrap = new JPanel();
JPanel content_panel_wrap = new JPanel();
navigation_panel_wrap.setPreferredSize(new Dimension(250, 700));
content_panel_wrap.setPreferredSize(new Dimension(750, 700));
content_panel_wrap.setBackground(Color.green);
navigation_panel_wrap.setBackground(Color.red);
this.getContentPane().add(navigation_panel_wrap);
this.getContentPane().add(content_panel_wrap);
}
public static void main(String[] args)
{
Example example = new Example();
example.setVisible(true);
}
}
As you can see I manually set layout manager for JFrame (FlowLayout instead of BorderLayout with zero horizontal and vertical gaps). Of course, I can just use BorderLayout and than use add() method with BorderLayout.EAST and BorderLayout.WEST parameters, but I want to understand what's wrong with FlowLayout.
When I run my application, I get the following (no green JPanel):
If I decrease width of, for example, content_panel_wrap and make it 744px instead of 750px, everything works correctly.
So the question is - what are these strange 6 pixels? I'm not sure this value is constant for all operating systems, so I want to understand its origin.

There's nothing wrong with FlowLayout but you will need to call pack() for all components to be sized.

As for your codes problem (+1 to #Reimeus) calling pack() is the solution.
as per docs:
Causes this Window to be sized to fit the preferred size and layouts
of its subcomponents. If the window and/or its owner are not yet
displayable, both are made displayable before calculating the
preferred size. The Window will be validated after the preferredSize
is calculated.
Tips:
Dont extend JFrame unnecessarily.
Use Event Dispatch Thread when creating and changing UI components:
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
// create UI components etc here
}
});
Dont call setPreferredSize() rather override getPrefferedSize() of component.
Dont call setSize(...) on JFrame rather call JFrame#pack() before setting it visible.
Dont forget to call JFrame#defaultCloseOperation(..) or your initial/EDT thread will not be terminated when JFrame is closed.
Here is an example combining my advice and your code:
import java.awt.Color;
import java.awt.Dimension;
import java.awt.FlowLayout;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
import javax.swing.SwingUtilities;
public class Example {
private final JFrame frame;
public Example() {
frame = new JFrame();
frame.setTitle("Example");
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);//app exited when frame closes
frame.setResizable(false);
frame.setLayout(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.LEFT, 0, 0));
JPanel navigation_panel_wrap = new JPanel() {
#Override
public Dimension getPreferredSize() {
return new Dimension(250, 700);
}
};
JPanel content_panel_wrap = new JPanel() {
#Override
public Dimension getPreferredSize() {
return new Dimension(750, 700);
}
};
content_panel_wrap.setBackground(Color.green);
navigation_panel_wrap.setBackground(Color.red);
frame.add(navigation_panel_wrap);
frame.add(content_panel_wrap);
//pack frame (size components to preferred size)
frame.pack();
frame.setVisible(true);//make frame visible
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
new Example();
}
});
}
}