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JFrame will not load new screen

I have a class that extends JFrame and works by adding in 2 panels with BoxLayout buttons, and one JTabbedPane in the center which displays graphs.
I want one of the buttons to remove all current components in the frame and add new ones.
Here are the methods used.
private void createAndShowGraphs() {
ImageIcon createImageIcon(lsuLettersPath); //simple png file to fill one tab
final JTabbedPane jtp = new JTabbedPane();
JLabel iconLabel = new JLabel();
iconLabel.setOpaque(true);
jtp.addTab(null, icon, iconLabel);
//Here is where the errors begin
JPanel menu = new JPanel();
menu.setLayout(new BoxLayout(menu, BoxLayout.Y_AXIS));
//I want this button to remove all components currently in the JFrame and replace them with new components specified in the createAndShowIntro() method
menu.add(new JButton(new AbstractAction("Intro Pane") {
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
//I've also tried putting removeAll in the Intro method
removeAll();
createAndShowIntro();
}
}));
add(jtp, BorderLayout.CENTER);
add(menu, BorderLayout.WEST);
pack();
setVisible(true);
}
private void createAndShowIntro() {
System.out.println("Made it to Intro");
//all I want is a blank JLabel with the String "test" to show up
JPanel test = new JPanel();
test.setLayout(new BorderLayout());
JLabel label = new JLabel();
label.setText("test");
label.setHorizontalAlignment(SwingConstants.CENTER);
label.setVerticalAlignment(SwingConstants.CENTER);
test.add(label);
add(test, BorderLayout.CENTER);
test.revalidate();
label.revalidate();
validate();
test.repaint();
label.repaint();
repaint();
pack();
setVisible(true);
}
When I call createAndShowGraphs() in main() and then hit the 'Intro' button, everything freezes and nothing is actually removed. I know it makes it the Intro method because of the "Made it to Intro" string output to the terminal.
I've tried all kinds of combinations of invalidate(), validate(), revalidate(), repaint() on the labels and on the frame itself. Really frustrated because I don't know how else I'm going to be able to display 3 different screens to switch back and forth between while only actually displaying one at a time.
Thanks for your time.

Problems with BorderLayout() in Java

I've tried a lot of different ways, but I will explain two and what was happening (no error messages or anything, just not showing up like they should or just not showing up at all):
First, I created a JPanel called layout and set it as a BorderLayout. Here is a snippet of how I made it look:
JPanel layout = new JPanel();
layout.setLayout(new BorderLayout());
colorChoice = new JLabel("Choose your color: ");
layout.add(colorChoice, BorderLayout.NORTH);
colorBox = new JComboBox(fireworkColors);
colorBox.addActionListener(this);
layout.add(colorBox, BorderLayout.NORTH);
In this scenario what happens is they don't show up at all. It just continues on with whatever else I added.
So then I just tried setLayout(new BorderLayout()); Here is a snippet of that code:
setLayout(new BorderLayout());
colorChoice = new JLabel("Choose your color: ");
add(colorChoice, BorderLayout.NORTH);
colorBox = new JComboBox(fireworkColors);
colorBox.addActionListener(this);
add(colorBox, BorderLayout.NORTH);
In this scenario they are added, however, the width takes up the entire width of the frame and the textfield (not shown in the snippet) takes up basically everything else.
Here is what I have tried:
setPreferredSize() & setSize()
Is there something else that I am missing? Thank you.
I also should note that this is a separate class and there is no main in this class. I only say this because I've extended JPanel instead of JFrame. I've seen some people extend JFrame and use JFrame, but I haven't tried it yet.

You created a JPanel, but didn't add it to any container. It won't be visible until it is added to something (a JFrame, or another panel that is in a frame somewhere up the hierarhcy)
You added two components to the same position in the BorderLayout. The last one added is the one that will occupy that position.
Update:
You do not need to extend JFrame. I never do, instead I always extend JPanel. This makes my custom components more flexible: they can be added in another panel, or they can be added to a frame.
So, to demonstrate the problem I will make an entire, small, program:
public class BadGui
{
public static void main(String[] argv)
{
final JFrame frame = new JFrame("Hello World");
final JPanel panel = new JPanel();
panel.add(new JLabel("Hello"), BorderLayout.NORTH);
panel.add(new JLabel("World"), BorderLayout.SOUTH);
frame.setVisible(true);
}
}
In this program I created a panel, but did not add it to anything so it never becomes visible.
In the next program I will fix it by adding the panel to the frame.
public class FixedGui
{
public static void main(String[] argv)
{
final JFrame frame = new JFrame("Hello World");
final JPanel panel = new JPanel();
panel.add(new JLabel("Hello"), BorderLayout.NORTH);
panel.add(new JLabel("World"), BorderLayout.SOUTH);
frame.getContentPane().add(panel);
frame.setVisible(true);
}
}
Note that in both of these, when I added something to the panel, I chose different layout parameters (one label I put in 'North' and the other in 'South').

Here is an example of a JPanel with a BorderLayout that adds a JPanel with a button and label to the "North"
public class Frames extends JFrame
{
public Frames()
{
JPanel homePanel = new JPanel(new BorderLayout());
JPanel northContainerPanel = new JPanel(new FlowLayout());
JButton yourBtn = new JButton("I Do Nothing");
JLabel yourLabel = new JLabel("I Say Stuff");
homePanel.add(northContainerPanel, BorderLayout.NORTH);
northContainerPanel.add(yourBtn);
northContainerPanel.add(yourLabel);
add(homePanel);
setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.DISPOSE_ON_CLOSE);
setLocationRelativeTo(null);
setExtendedState(JFrame.MAXIMIZED_BOTH);
setTitle("Cool Stuff");
pack();
setVisible(true);
}
public static void main(String[] args)
{
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(Frames::new);
}
}

The below suggestion is assuming that your extending JFrame.
Testing
First of all, without seeing everything, theres always a numerous amount of things you can try.
First off, after you load everything, try adding this in (Again, assuming your extending JFrame:
revalidate();
repaint();
I add this into my own Swing projects all the time, as it refreshes and checks to see that everything is on the frame.
If that doesn't work, make sure that all your JComponent's are added to your JPanel, and ONLY your JPanel is on your JFrame. Your JFrame cannot sort everything out; the JPanel does that.
JPanel window = new JPanel();
JButton button = new JButton("Press me");
add(window);
window.add(button); // Notice how it's the JPanel that holds my components.
One thing though, you still add your JMenu's and what-not through your JFrame, not your JPanel.

Setting up JFrame with leftPanel, topPanel and bottomPanel

First time posting here, and let me first say that I'm a bit of a Java noob, I've only started learning it in uni this year.
So anyway, I have to create a UI for a Tamagotchi project, and I'm trying to create it using JFrame etc.
This is what I'm trying to create:
This is my code so far:
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
public class DogUI {
private JFrame DogUI;
private JPanel leftPanel, topPanel, bottomPanel, rightPanels;
private JButton jb;
private JLabel lb, lb1, lb2;
public DogUI() {
GUI();
}
public void GUI() {
DogUI = new JFrame("Dog UI");
DogUI.setSize(800, 600);
DogUI.setResizable(false);
leftPanel = new JPanel();
leftPanel.setBackground(Color.green);
leftPanel.setLayout(new BoxLayout(leftPanel, BoxLayout.Y_AXIS));
topPanel = new JPanel();
topPanel.setBackground(Color.white);
bottomPanel = new JPanel();
bottomPanel.setBackground(Color.red);
rightPanels = new JPanel();
rightPanels.setLayout(new BoxLayout(rightPanels, BoxLayout.X_AXIS));
DogUI.setVisible(true);
lb = new JLabel("Name: ");
leftPanel.add(lb);
lb1 = new JLabel("Image");
topPanel.add(lb1);
lb2 = new JLabel("Buttons");
bottomPanel.add(lb2);
rightPanels.add(topPanel);
rightPanels.add(bottomPanel);
DogUI.add(rightPanels);
}
public static void main(String [] args) {
new DogUI();
}
}
This is what I end up with:
I'm sure it's something simple, or perhaps I am going the complete wrong way about doing it, but please try explain it in layman's terms if possible.
Thanks.
Chris.

You are only adding the rightPanels to the frame, you never add leftPanel
The rightPanel is using X_AXIS which is horizontal. You want Y_AXIS
When you do add the leftPanel, you're going to want to set your frame's layout to GridLayout(1, 2). See GridLayout
setVisible after adding all your components.
Follow Java namingConvention. variables begin with lower case, using camel casing. DogUI → dogUI
Swing apps should be run from the Event Dispatch Thread (EDT). You can do this by wrapping the code in the main in a SwingUtilities.invokeLater(...). See more at Initial Threads

Try using a GridLayout instead.
public void GUI() {
DogUI = new JFrame("Dog UI");
DogUI.setSize(800, 600);
DogUI.setResizable(false);
DogUI.setLayout(new GridLayout(1,2));//1row 2col
leftPanel = new JPanel();
leftPanel.setBackground(Color.green);
topPanel = new JPanel();
topPanel.setBackground(Color.white);
bottomPanel = new JPanel();
bottomPanel.setBackground(Color.red);
rightPanels = new JPanel();
rightPanels.setLayout(new GridLayout(2,1));//2row 1col
lb = new JLabel("Name: ");
leftPanel.add(lb);
lb1 = new JLabel("Image");
topPanel.add(lb1);
lb2 = new JLabel("Buttons");
bottomPanel.add(lb2);
rightPanels.add(topPanel);
rightPanels.add(bottomPanel);
DogUI.add(leftPanel);
DogUI.add(rightPanels);
DogUI.setVisible(true);
}

It sounds like you want a parent JPanel with a BorderLayout. That parent JPanel contains two other panels, on the east and west side of it. The west side can contain your progress panel, and the east side contains another JPanel, which has a GridLayout of 1 column and 2 rows, or alternatively, a BorderLayout. From there you can add the other two JPanels to that last JPanel which represent whatever that right hand side of the picture shows.
The overall parent JPanel could also be a GridLayout with 2 columns and 1 row, but a BorderLayout might look better as you might find one side of the application might not need as much space and might limit how much space it takes up. Perhaps the east panel should be a BorderLayout too as your image might not take up that much space on the north side giving the components on the south side the rest of the container's available space.

Why won't my buttons appear when I run this JFrame?

I am trying to make a Rock, Paper, Scissors game and I have added 3 buttons to the frame, however when I launch the program two of the buttons don't appear until you hover over them, anyone have any idea why?
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import java.util.Random;
import java.awt.FlowLayout;
import javax.swing.JOptionPane;
public class RPSFrame extends JFrame {
public static void main(String [] args){
new RPSFrame();
}
public RPSFrame(){
JFrame Frame1 = new JFrame();
this.setSize(500,500);
this.setVisible(true);
this.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
this.setTitle("Rock, Paper or Scissors game");
this.setLocationRelativeTo(null);
ClickListener cl1 = new ClickListener();
ClickListener cl2 = new ClickListener();
ClickListener cl3 = new ClickListener();
JPanel panel1 = new JPanel();
JLabel label1 = new JLabel("Result:");
panel1.setLayout(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.CENTER, 25, 25));
this.add(panel1);
this.setVisible(false);
JPanel panel2 = new JPanel();
JButton Rock = new JButton("Rock");
Rock.addActionListener(cl1);
panel2.setLayout(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.LEFT));
panel2.add(Rock);
this.add(panel2);
this.setVisible(true);
JPanel panel3 = new JPanel();
JButton Paper = new JButton("Paper");
Paper.addActionListener(cl2);
panel3.setLayout(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.CENTER));
panel3.add(Paper);
this.add(panel3);
this.setVisible(true);
JPanel panel4 = new JPanel();
JButton Scissors = new JButton("Scissors");
Scissors.addActionListener(cl3);
panel4.setLayout(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.RIGHT));
panel4.add(Scissors);
this.add(panel4);
this.setVisible(true);
}
private class ClickListener implements ActionListener{
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e){
if(e.getSource() == "Rock"){
int AI = new Random().nextInt(3) + 1;
JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null, "I have been clicked!");
}
}
}
}

The setVisible(true) statement should be invoked AFTER all the components have been added to the frame.
You currently have two setVisible(...) statements, so you need to get rid of the first one.
Edit:
Took a second look at the code. You have multiple setVisible(...) statements. Get rid of them all except for the last one.
Don't create separate panels for each button. Instead you create one panel (called buttonPanel) for all the buttons. In your case you might use a horizontal BoxLayout. Add a button to the panel, then add glue then add a button, then add glue and then add your final button. Then add this buttonPanel to the NORTH of the frame. ie. this.add(buttonPanel, BorderLayout.NORTH). Read the section from the Swing tutorial on How to Use Box Layout for more information on how the layout works and on what glue is.

The problem is that JFrame has a default BorderLayout. When you just add(component) without specifying a BorderLayout.[POSITION] e.g add(panel, BorderLayout.SOUTH), then the component will get added to the CENTER. The problem with that is each POSITION can only have one component. So the only component you see id the last one you add.
Now I don't know after specifying the positions, if you will get your desired result. A BorderLayout may not be the right fit. But just to see a change, you can set the layout to GridLayout(0, 1) and you will see the component.
this.setLayout(new GridLayout(0, 1));
If this is not the result you want, then you should look over Laying out Components within a Container to learn the different layouts available to you.
Also as I pointed out in my comment
if(e.getSource() == "Rock"){
with the above, you are trying to compare an object (ultimately a button) with a String. Instead you will want to compare the actionCommand
String command = e.getActionCommand();
if("Rock".equals(command)){

Resize JButtons in a BoxLayout

I'm trying to make a simple menu for my game. I have 4 buttons in the center and I want to make them a little bit bigger and center them.
The last part worked but I can't seem to call any of my JButtons and do a .setSize / .setPreferedSize(new Dimension()) on it.
public class mainMenu extends JFrame {
private JButton start, highscore, help, stoppen;
public mainMenu() {
super("Master Mind");
maakComponenten();
maakLayout();
toonFrame();
}
private void maakComponenten() {
start = new JButton("Start");
start.setBackground(Color.gray);
highscore = new JButton("Higscores");
help = new JButton("Help");
stoppen = new JButton("Stoppen");
}
private void maakLayout() {
JPanel hoofdmenu = new JPanel();
hoofdmenu.setLayout(new BoxLayout(hoofdmenu, BoxLayout.Y_AXIS ));
hoofdmenu.add(start);
start.setAlignmentX(CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
hoofdmenu.add(highscore);
highscore.setAlignmentX(CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
hoofdmenu.add(help);
help.setAlignmentX(CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
hoofdmenu.add(stoppen);
stoppen.setAlignmentX(CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
super.add(hoofdmenu);
}
private void toonFrame() {
setDefaultCloseOperation(WindowConstants.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
setVisible(true);
setSize(500,500);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
new mainMenu();
}
}

As an example, to change the size of the "Start" button,
change :
start1 = new JButton("Start");
to
start1 = new JButton("Start") {
{
setSize(150, 75);
setMaximumSize(getSize());
}
};

The problem is that JFrames use BorderLayout by default, which means that your JPanel will naturally fill the space.
Before adding your JPanel, call the following code to change the JFrame's layout to null and use the JPanel's settings instead.
this.setLayout(null);
JPanel hoofdmenu = new JPanel();
hoofdmenu.setBounds(0,0, 400, 100);
Alternatively, you could set the maximum size of the JButtons
Dimension maxSize = new Dimension(100, 100);
start.setMaximumSize(maxSize);
highscore.setMaximumSize(maxSize);
help.setMaximumSize(maxSize);
stoppen.setMaximumSize(maxSize);

Here's another example following behind the previous two - I'm making a soundboard program, and this is actually a sample from it - The JPanel actually is needed, agreeing to the second post.
JFrame frame = new JFrame();
JPanel menuPanel = new JPanel();
JButton Button1 = new JButton("<BUTTON NAME 1>");
Button1.setSize(80, 30);
Button1.setLocation(4, 4);
JButton Button2 = new JButton("<BUTTON NAME 2>");
Button2.setSize(80, 30);
Button2.setLocation(90, 4);
Ah, and another thing - You created the buttons in a different block from the second piece of code. Doing that causes the other blocks to not see it. You need to declare them outside the block so all the blocks can see them.