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Can someone help me understand how ImageIcon works for java?

So I have about a year a 5/12 months experience playing around with java but I have never been able to make anything outside of skeletons. I would really appreciate it if someone could help me understand how I can make an image from my computer visible using swing.
I have gone between different websites trying to find answers but none of the example codes I've tried have worked out. Stackoverflow has helped in the past to learn java through various questions other people asked so I have made an account to ask a question myself. I'm probably being very dumb but my image never appears despite what I've tried. I come back to trying to understand swing every few months after giving up on it previously and while I feel I have a grasp on some basic concepts such as something should be set as visible, how to make/add a JFrame, etc, it's always this that messes me up.
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
public class Main extends JFrame {
public static void main(String[] args) {
JFrame frame = new JFrame("main");
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
ImageIcon ii = new ImageIcon("C:\\Users\\plasm\\IdeaProjects\\Shdo\\src\\mario.jpg");
JLabel lable = new JLabel(ii);
JScrollPane jsp = new JScrollPane(lable);
frame.getContentPane().add(jsp);
frame. setSize(1000, 700);
JButton button = new JButton();
button.setSize(new Dimension(300, 300));
button.setLocation(500, 350);
frame.getContentPane().add(button);
frame.setVisible(true);
}
}
The code above is copy-pasted from https://www.daniweb.com/programming/software-development/threads/379864/add-image-and-button-to-jframe aside from the pathway, however, it only shows a basic white JFrame at the set dimensions.

frame.getContentPane().add(jsp); // problem
frame. setSize(1000, 700);
JButton button = new JButton();
button.setSize(new Dimension(300, 300)); // does nothing
button.setLocation(500, 350); // does nothing
frame.getContentPane().add(button); //problem
The problem is that the default layout manager for the content pane of the JFrame is a BorderLayout. You are attempting to add two compnents to the CENTER of the BorderLayout which won't work. The button replaces the scroll pane.
Instead you should be using:
frame.getContentPane().add(jsp, BorderLayout.CENTER);
frame. setSize(1000, 700);
JButton button = new JButton("Testing");
frame.getContentPane().add(button, BorderLayout.PAGE_END);
Read the section from the Swing tutorial on Layout Manager for more information and working example of a BorderLayout.
As mentioned in the first comment. There is no need for the getContentPane(). The frame will automatically add the component to the content pane.
Also, when doing testing it is better to do something like:
JLabel label = new JLabel("Icon label");
label.setIcon(ii);
This way if you specify the wrong path for the image, you will at least see the text of the label and you will know the problem is in the path, not with the layout code.

How do I put a JPanel in center of a JFrame irrespective the size of JFrame (of course its size is greater than jpanel)? [duplicate]

I'm using the NetBeans GUI builder to handle my layout (I'm terrible with LayoutManagers) and am trying to place a simple JLabel so that it is always centered (horizontally) inside its parent JPanel. Ideally, this would maintain true even if the JPanel was resized, but if that's a crazy amount of coding than it is sufficient to just be centered when the JPanel is first created.
I'm bad enough trying to handle layouts myself, but since the NetBeans GUI Builder autogenerates immutable code, it's been impossible for me to figure out how to do this centering, and I haven't been able to find anything online to help me.
Thanks to anybody who can steer me in the right direction!

Here are four ways to center a component:
import java.awt.*;
import javax.swing.*;
import javax.swing.border.*;
class CenterComponent {
public static JLabel getLabel(String text) {
return getLabel(text, SwingConstants.LEFT);
}
public static JLabel getLabel(String text, int alignment) {
JLabel l = new JLabel(text, alignment);
l.setBorder(new LineBorder(Color.RED, 2));
return l;
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
JPanel p = new JPanel(new GridLayout(2,2,4,4));
p.setBackground(Color.black);
p.setBorder(new EmptyBorder(4,4,4,4));
JPanel border = new JPanel(new BorderLayout());
border.add(getLabel(
"Border", SwingConstants.CENTER), BorderLayout.CENTER);
p.add(border);
JPanel gridbag = new JPanel(new GridBagLayout());
gridbag.add(getLabel("GridBag"));
p.add(gridbag);
JPanel grid = new JPanel(new GridLayout());
grid.add(getLabel("Grid", SwingConstants.CENTER));
p.add(grid);
// from #0verbose
JPanel box = new JPanel();
box.setLayout(new BoxLayout(box, BoxLayout.X_AXIS ));
box.add(Box.createHorizontalGlue());
box.add(getLabel("Box"));
box.add(Box.createHorizontalGlue());
p.add(box);
JFrame f = new JFrame("Streeeetch me..");
f.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
f.setContentPane(p);
f.pack();
f.setLocationByPlatform(true);
f.setVisible(true);
}
});
}
}

By using Borderlayout, you can put any of JComponents to the CENTER area. For an example, see an answer to Stack Overflow question Get rid of the gap between JPanels. This should work.

Even with BoxLayout you can achieve that:
JPanel listPane = new JPanel();
listPane.setLayout(new BoxLayout(listPane, BoxLayout.X_AXIS ));
JLabel label = new JLabel();
listPane.add(Box.createHorizontalGlue());
listPane.add(label);
listPane.add(Box.createHorizontalGlue());
mKorbel's solution is perfect for your goal. Anyway I always like to suggest BoxLayout because it's very flexible.

Mara: "thanks for your response, however the NetBeans GUI Build uses GroupLayout and this is not overridable."
Not true! Right click anywhere inside JFrame (or any other GUI container) in NetBeans GUI builder and select "Set Layout". By default is selected "Free Design", which is Group layout, but you can select any other layout including Border layout as advised by mKorbel.

There's many ways to do this, depending on the layout manager(s) you use. I suggest you read the Laying Out Components Within a Container tutorial.
I believe the following will work, regardless of layout manager:
JLabel.setHorizontalAlignment(SwingConstants.CENTER)

How can I add ScrollBar to JTextArea in Java Swing?

Anyone help me how to add a scroll bar to a JTextArea with Swing in Java?
The JTextArea just disappear when I add the scroll bar on it.
Hope somebody get me add a vertical scrollbar on it.
Additional explanation will be very thankful
public class Practice extends JFrame {
JFrame frame = new JFrame("AAA");
JTextArea textarea = new JTextArea();
JScrollPane scroll = new JScrollPane(textarea);
JPanel panelForScroll = new JPanel(null);
public Practice(){
frame.setLayout(null);
frame.setBounds(100,100,400,710);
frame.setResizable(false);
frame.setVisible(true);
textarea.setEditable(false);
textarea.setFont(new Font("arian", Font.BOLD, 16));
textarea.setBounds(20, 280, 340, 70);
panelForScroll.add(scroll);
frame.add(panelForScroll); //can't find text area....
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
new Practice();
}
}

There are several errors in your code:
You're using a null layout, this is discouraged as it produces more problems than solutions, specially when you try to use JScrollPanes, since they take the preferredSize of the Component to decide whether to add the scroll bars or not. See Why is it frowned upon to use a null layout in Swing? for more information about this. To fix this, remove this line:
frame.setLayout(null);
And instead use a layout manager or combinations of them along with borders for extra spacing between components.
While null layouts might seem like the best, easiest and faster way to design complex GUIs for Swing newbies, the more you progress in it, the more problems related to the use of them you'll find (as it's the case)
You're extending your class from JFrame and you're creating an instance of JFrame in it too, please use one or the other. When you extend JFrame you're saying your class is a JFrame and thus it cannot be placed inside another Container because JFrame is a rigid container. I recommend to forget the extends JFrame part, since anyway you're not using the JFrame that is generated by this action and stay with the object you created. See https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41252329/java-swing-using-extends-jframe-vs-calling-it-inside-of-class for a more detailed answer about this problem.
You're making your GUI visible before you have added all the elements, this could cause your GUI to not display all the elements until you hover over them, this line:
frame.setVisible(true);
Should be one of the last lines in your program
You're not placing your program on the Event Dispatch Thread (EDT) which makes your application to not be thread safe, you can fix it by writing this on your main method.
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
//Place your constructor here
}
});
You're setting bounds for the textArea but not for the scrollPane, but you should really not be setting the bounds manually (see point #1 again).
Now, you can make a simple GUI with a JTextArea with a JScrollPane as follows:
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JScrollPane;
import javax.swing.JTextArea;
import javax.swing.SwingUtilities;
public class ScrollPaneToTextArea {
private JTextArea textArea;
private JFrame frame;
private JScrollPane scroll;
public static void main(String[] args) {
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
new ScrollPaneToTextArea().createAndShowGui();
}
});
}
public void createAndShowGui() {
frame = new JFrame("ScrollPane to TextArea");
textArea = new JTextArea(10, 20); //Rows and cols to be displayed
scroll = new JScrollPane(textArea);
// scroll = new JScrollPane(textArea, JScrollPane.VERTICAL_SCROLLBAR_ALWAYS, JScrollPane.HORIZONTAL_SCROLLBAR_AS_NEEDED);
frame.add(scroll); //We add the scroll, since the scroll already contains the textArea
frame.pack();
frame.setVisible(true);
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
}
}
Which produces this output and the scroll bars are added when needed (i.e. when text goes further than the rows it can handle in the view)
If you want the vertical scroll bars to appear always you can uncomment the line:
scroll = new JScrollPane(textArea, JScrollPane.VERTICAL_SCROLLBAR_ALWAYS, JScrollPane.HORIZONTAL_SCROLLBAR_AS_NEEDED);
Which will produce the following outputs:
You can read more about JScrollPane in the docs and JTextArea also in their own docs.

JPanel panelForScroll = new JPanel(null);
This sets the NULL Layout to this JPanel. This would require more configuration (just as you did for the frame object).
Just remove the null (also from frame.setLayout(null)!)

You have to use Jtextpane to get the scroll bar on textarea.
JTextArea ta = new JTextArea();
JScrollPane sp = new JScrollPane(ta);
JFrame f = new JFrame();
f.getContentPane().add(sp);

you are setting the panel's layout to null,then you didn't specify the scroll bar bounds. Since you only have one component in your panel which is the scroll bar I recommend using FlowLayout

Multiple JPanels in one JFrame not showing top panel

So I'm writing a program in which I wish to have a single JFrame containing a JPanel header in a separate colour and directly underneath have a grid of buttons in a separate JPanel. So far my program works perfectly except for the fact that the header String isn't showing up in the NORTH panel. Instead I'm getting a box containing the set background colour with a small grey box in the centre. I'm wondering if I didn't set the size of the panel correctly?
I have heard this can be accomplished using JLabel, but when I tried to do this, it would not show the background colour that I had set.
So, could anyone please show me how to achieve the following either with the JPanel (preferably because I would like to know how it works and what I'm missing) or with JLabel: filling that little grey box in the middle of the header with a String.
Here is my code:
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import javax.swing.*;
public class Example {
public static void main(String[] args) {
// Initialize a panel for the header, and mainGrid which will contain buttons
JPanel panel = new JPanel();
JPanel header = new JPanel();
JPanel mainGrid = new JPanel();
// Initialize the header
DisplayPanel message = new DisplayPanel();
header.setBackground(Color.ORANGE);
header.add(message);
// Initialize the mainGrid panel
mainGrid.setLayout(new GridLayout(2,2,2,2));
mainGrid.add(new JButton("1"));
mainGrid.add(new JButton("2"));
mainGrid.add(new JButton("3"));
mainGrid.add(new JButton("4"));
// Add the two subpanels to the main panel
panel.setLayout(new BorderLayout());
panel.add(header, BorderLayout.NORTH); // The issue is this panel isn't displaying the String created in DisplayPanel
panel.add(mainGrid, BorderLayout.CENTER);
// Add main panel to JFrame
JFrame display = new JFrame("Test");
display.setContentPane(panel);
display.setSize(200,100);
display.setLocation(500,200);
display.setVisible(true);
display.setResizable(false);
display.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
}
private static class DisplayPanel extends JPanel {
public void paintComponent(Graphics g) {
super.paintComponent(g);
g.drawString("header" , 20, 20); // The string I want to be displayed
}
}
}
I would very much appreciate anyone's help or input as I have only been studying Java for a few months and this is my first post. Thank you in advance.
Also, any general tips on writing that you may have would be greatly appreciated.

I'm wondering if your problem is that you're nesting your message JPanel inside of the header JPanel, and the container header JPanel uses the JPanel default FlowLayout. Thus the component it holds won't expand on its own and will remain trivially small.
Consider either giving the header JPanel a BorderLayout so that message expands inside of it, or
use a JLabel to show your text, not a JPanel's paintComponent method. The JLabel should size itself to be big enough to show its text. If you do this and want it to show a background color, all you have to do is call setOpaque(true) on your JLabel, and you're set.
Actually, if you nest the JLabel, then there's no need to make it opaque. Just do this:
JPanel header = new JPanel();
JPanel mainGrid = new JPanel();
JLabel message = new JLabel("Header", SwingConstants.CENTER);
header.setBackground(Color.ORANGE);
header.setLayout(new BorderLayout());
header.add(message);

I would highly recommend using a GUI builder WYSIWYG IDE, like NetBeans, where you can easily drag and drop components to where they need to be. If you're doing any sort of complex GUI layout, it can be madness (and in my opinion, nonsensical) trying to write and maintain the code.
The layout your trying to implement would be trivial in NetBeans.

How to use the JScrollPane in Java

How can I get the scroller around my JList component in the code given below? It doesn't seem to work properly :(
public class JButtonO extends JFrame{
String[] values = {"henry", "Michael","Uche","John","Ullan","Nelly",
"Ime","Lekan","Austine","jussi","Ossi","Imam","Empo","Austine","Becky",
"Scholar","Ruth", "Anny"};
public JButtonO()
{
super("the button");
this.setSize(400,200);
JPanel panel = new JPanel();
JLabel label = new JLabel("Output Items:");
label.setAlignmentX(1);
label.setAlignmentY(1);
JList conList = new JList(values);
conList.setVisibleRowCount(3);
JScrollPane scroller = new JScrollPane(conList);
panel.add(label);
panel.add(scroller);
panel.add(conList);
this.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
this.add(panel);
this.setVisible(true);
}

Adding the JScrollPane scroller that includes the JList conList to the JPanel panel is enough.
The mistake is that you are adding the JList a second time.
JScrollPane scroller = new JScrollPane(conList);
panel.add(label);
panel.add(scroller);
panel.add(conList); // <---THIS LINE SHOULD BE DELETED...

Look, I may not answering what you need, because I don´t remember to much of swing layout. I don´t work with it a long time ago...
But removing setting a layout (I remember) on your JPanel it works with this code:
public JButtonO() {
super("the button");
this.setSize(400, 200);
// Create a panel with a borderlayout
JPanel jpanel = new JPanel(new BorderLayout());
JLabel label = new JLabel("Output Items:");
label.setAlignmentX(1);
label.setAlignmentY(1);
// Add Label to top of layout
jpanel.add(label, BorderLayout.NORTH);
JList conList = new JList(values);
conList.setVisibleRowCount(3);
JScrollPane scroller = new JScrollPane(conList);
//AddScroll to center
jpanel.add(scroller);
//Add Panel to JFrame
this.add(jpanel);
this.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
this.setVisible(true);
}
I think the problems is the default layoutmaneger of JPanel. Because of how it works your scroll was not "srink" enough to create scrolls...
Hope it helps, even without too much explanation...
ACTUALLY: After I post the answer I saw your mistake. Now I can explain what is wrong. You already added your JList inside your JScrollPane here:
JScrollPane scroller = new JScrollPane(conList);
But after that you put it inside the JPanel:
panel.add(conList);
this changes where yout JList will be displayed, and let the JScroll empty again. Without components it will be displayed with size 0x0 and will not be draw (even being there).
Now I think I helped =D

The JScrollPane has settings called the scrollbar policies which say when the scrollbars are to be displayed. You can set them using JScrolPane(Component,int,int) constructor, or by calling setVerticalScrollBarPolicy() and setHorizontalScrollBarPolicy(). The default policies are "as needed", meaning the scrollbar is only displayed if the component is too large to display whole. So if your list fits inside the window, the scrolbars will not be visible, but will become visible when you e.g. make the window smaller using the mouse. You can change one or both policies to "always" using corresponding constants in order to make the scrollbar(s) always visible if that's what you need.