Adding JPanels through a loop - java

Made it work! Thank you guys! The code follows. I used BoxLayout since I thought it'd be ideal for stacking questions one on top of the other, but now I got issues with the layout... When I stack several questions the question panels start overlapping. Any thoughts?
panels1 = new MultipleChoice[5];
setLayout(new BoxLayout(this, BoxLayout.PAGE_AXIS));
for(int i=0; i<4; i++){
panels1[i]= new MultipleChoice();
panels1[i].setAlignmentX(CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
add(panels1[i]);
}
setVisible(true);
I'm working on designing an Online Test applet. A test has multiple choice and true/false questions. To set up a test I created two JPanel classes, one for the multiple choice question and one for the true/false questions. So when a test is created I'll just dynamically add these panels to a JPanel container according to the non-fixed number of questions.
First, how can I dynamically add new panels to a panel? I thought about declaring an array of the JPanel type. I created and then add objects of this panel class using a for loop:
MultitipleChoicePanel[] PanelArray;
for (...){
PanelArray[i] = new MultipleChoicePanel();
containerpanel.add(PanelArray[i]);
}
I don't know if this is technically possible. This is my first time using Swing, and I tried doing this but obviously it didn't work. Does anyone have an idea how correctly dynamically add these panels?
Second, which of the layout managers is best suited for the container panel in order to fit every new panel added right under the previous one? I thought about dynamically setting up a GridLayout of one column and add rows as I add panels. But I've been really struggling modifying swings dynamically.
Any suggestions?
Thank you so much for your help!

JPanel default layout is FlowLayout and add each component by default to the right so it would fit your problem.
You also may interested in swingx they have HorizontalLayout.
Example:
//in some place
JPanel myBigPanel = new JPanel();
myBigPanel.setLayout(new HorizontalLayout()); // swingx api
List<MultitipleChoicePanel> panelList = new ArrayList<>();
// panelList.add(new MultipleChoicePanel()).. .n times
for(MultipleChoicePanel mp : panelList){
myBigPanel.add(mp);
}
myBigPanel.revalidate(); // revalidate should call repaint but who knows
myBigPanel.repaint();
How to use various Layout Managers

how correctly dynamically add these panels?
After adding components to a visible GUI you need to do:
panel.add(...);
panel.revalidate();
panel.repaint();

"and then add objects of this panel class using a for loop:.....I dont know if its technically possible"
As far as an array of panels, I would do it with an arraylist and do it similarly to how you did it.
import java.util.ArrayList;
ArrayList<MultipleChoicePanel> array = new ArrayList<MultipleChoicePanel>();
for(...){
array.add(new MultipleChoicePanel());
containerPanel.add(array.get(i));
}

import java.awt.*;
import javax.swing.*;
public class JavaSwing extends JApplet {
public void init(){
Container content = getContentPane();
JScrollPane pane= new JScrollPane();
JPanel panel = new JPanel();
panel.setLayout(new BoxLayout(panel,BoxLayout.Y_AXIS));
panel.add(addPanel("title121"));
panel.add(addPanel("title112"));
panel.add(addPanel("title12"));
panel.add(addPanel("title11"));
pane.getViewport().add(panel);
content.add(pane);
}
public static JPanel addPanel(String title){
JPanel panel = new JPanel();
panel.add(new JButton(title));
return panel;
}
}

Related

Change JTextField height on Swing

I'm trying to fix the height of the "amountField" text field, but I can't.
I would like the height of amountField to have the same height as the JComboBox that it's above, so it looks better.
Right now, the JTextField looks very tall compared with the rest of design.
I've tried everything that I've read in this forum, but nothing seems to work.
I don't know if it's relevant, but this whole JPanel (WithdrawalScreen) is inside another JPanel with BorderLayout. This panel is the center part of it
Thanks
PictureHere
public class WithdrawalScreen extends JPanel {
Public JPanel init() {
this.setLayout(new GridLayout(0,1));
account = new JLabel("account");
accountSelect = new JComboBox(labels);
amount = new JLabel("amount");
amountField = new JTextField("");
submit = new JButton("SUBMIT");
this.add(account);
this.add(accountSelect);
this.add(amount);
this.add(amountField);
this.add(submit);
return this;
}
}
Try creating the Grid Layout with 5 rows and 1 column. I think the height is messed up because you are not setting the constructor arguments properly.
new GridLayout(5,1);
Grid layout will stretch the component and give the same size to all of its components. In order to keep the "default" size of each component, you can use BoxLayout with BoxLayout.Y_AXIS parameter in its constructor. Another way would be to use a dummy-nested JPanel with another layout. Let's say FlowLayout.
JTextField textField = new JTextField(10);
JPanel nestedPanel = new JPanel(new FlowLayout());
nestedPanel.add(textField);
gridLayoutPanel.add(nestedPanel);
JTextField will not be stretched. nestedPanel will be. Do some experiments yourself and you will find the way that fits your needs.
A link that will help you: A visoual guide to Layout Managers.

java swing multiple jpanels

Basically all I want to do is draw two rows of buttons for a lights out game (homework), but I don't know how to make both panels show up. I've pretty much almost no graphics before, and I don't really understand anything I'm doing.
The panels them selves work, but it just shows whichever I add second (I assume it's overwriting the previous panel)
public static void main(String[] args) {
String nButtonsString = JOptionPane.showInputDialog("How many buttons would you like?");
int nButtons = Integer.parseInt(nButtonsString);
JFrame myFrame = new JFrame();
myFrame.setTitle("Linear Lights Out Game.");
myFrame.setSize(FRAME_SIZE);
JPanel control_buttons = new Linear_Controls();
myFrame.add(control_buttons);
JPanel lights = new LinearLightsPanel(nButtons);
myFrame.add(lights);
myFrame.pack();
myFrame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
myFrame.setVisible(true);
myFrame.add(control_buttons);
myFrame.add(lights);
By default a JFrame uses a BorderLayout. Also, by default components get added to the CENTER of the BorderLayout. However the CENTER can only contain a single component so only the last component added is displayed. Try:
myFrame.add(control_buttons, BorderLayout.NORTH);
Now the two components should show up.
Read the section from the Swing tutorial on Using Layout Managers for more information and examples. Also take a look at the Trail/Table of Contents link to see other useful topics for basic Swing usage.
You have to create the 2 panels A and B and add them to another panel C. Then you add C to your frame.
A bit better explained: This is what you have now:
JPanel lights = new LinearLightsPanel(nButtons);
myFrame.add(lights);
But you would like something like:
JPanel lightsA = new LinearLightsPanel(nButtonsA);
JPanel lightsB = new LinearLightsPanel(nButtonsB);
JPanel lightsC = new JPanel();
lightsC.add(lightsA);
lightsC.add(lightsB);
myFrame.add(lightsC);

Java swing GUI creation

I'm developing a Java GUI and I need:
A label in first row(only one label).
Starting 2nd row need to add say 100 buttons which extends to multiple lines(width shouldn't go beyond the visible screen)
In a new line one more Label
From next line say 100 buttons which extends to multiple lines(width shouldn't go beyond the visible screen)...
[OPTIONAL] If the components exceeds JFrame height then need a scroll facility to the main window (only vertical)
I have a strange results with flow layout, sometimes it stick to visible width, sometimes it sets even 500 buttons in a single row.
I have tried every layout and also multipanes. Still no luck.
Please guide.. just need an idea, No need of code
Updated with code: Sorry guys, that was my first question to stackoverflow
Thanks for prompt response
Infact i tried many, here is a simple one.
setLayout(new FlowLayout());
setTitle("JAVA GUI");
setSize(500,500);
setVisible(true);
add(new JLabel("row 1"));
JPanel panel1 = new JPanel(new FlowLayout());
for(int i=0;i<200;i++){
panel1.add(new JButton("b"+i));
}
add(panel1);
Here the panel1 is appearing in a sigle row which goes beyond the visible part of the screen.
I think this can be solved by setting maximumsize to Jframe, but no idea how to set its size to FULL SCREEN.
You can try MigLayout.
http://www.miglayout.com/
Also this question is not really a question for stack overflow. A good way to ask your question would be to post your code and tell us what is wrong with it and what it is supposed to do.
While this is not the norm for 'good' stackOverflow questions, I don't have any problem with it myself. Some people cannot deal with anything except code. I would suggest that, if you're going to post code, that you take the trouble to post code that will compile, run, and demonstrate your situation. It really helps those of us out here understand what you're seeing and what you're trying to do.
You talk about "rows"; be aware that rows and columns are terms used with things like GridLayout and GridBagLayout, but I don't think they're appropriate for what you describe.
In your description, you don't say what you want scrolled. It would appear you want the entirety of the UI scrolled, I'll assume that for now.
I would try a JPanel with BoxLayout, oriented vertically, for the overall main UI. You will put some things into that:
The first JPanel.
Another JPanel, set with FlowLayout, holding the first bunch of buttons.
Another JPanel with the next JLabel
And a fourth JPanel, set with FlowLayout, holding the second bunch of buttons.
Now, I would put the top-level panel into a JScrollPane, and then put that into the CENTER section of a Frame (with its default BorderLayout), and see what happens. To tell the truth, I'm not sure, but these are the things I would start with.
I cannot tell, without running code, why you get odd behavior sometimes.
As said in a previous comment, using a ContentPane is the way to go. Here is a working example of what you want:
public class Test {
public static void main(String[] args) {
JFrame frame = new JFrame();
frame.setTitle("JAVA GUI");
JPanel panel1 = new JPanel();
panel1.setLayout(new BoxLayout(panel1, BoxLayout.Y_AXIS));
int nbLines = 10;
for (int i = 0; i < nbLines; i++) {
JPanel linePanel = new JPanel(new FlowLayout());
linePanel.add(new JLabel("row " + i));
for(int j = 0; j < 50; j++) {
linePanel.add(new JButton("b" + j));
}
panel1.add(linePanel);
}
frame.setContentPane(panel1);
//frame.setSize(500, 500);
frame.setExtendedState(frame.getExtendedState() | JFrame.MAXIMIZED_BOTH);
frame.pack();
frame.setVisible(true);
}
}
And here is what I get:
If you want to have left-aligned buttons you can use:
JPanel linePanel = new JPanel(new FlowLayout(FlowLayout.LEFT));

Placing JTextFields in a JFrame of a Java GUI

I have:
public class BaseStationFrame1 extends JFrame
{
JButton activateButton;
JButton deactivateButton;
BaseStation bs;
JTextField networkIdField;
JTextField portField;
public BaseStationFrame1(BaseStation _bs){
bs = _bs;
setTitle("Base Station");
setSize(600,500);
setLocation(100,200);
setVisible(true);
activateButton = new JButton("Activate");
deactivateButton = new JButton("Deactivate");
Container content = this.getContentPane();
content.setBackground(Color.white);
content.setLayout(new FlowLayout());
content.add(activateButton);
content.add(deactivateButton);
networkIdField = new JTextField("networkId : "+ bs.getNetworkId());
networkIdField.setEditable(false);
content.add(networkIdField);
portField = new JTextField("portId : "+ bs.getPort());
portField.setEditable(false);
content.add(portField);}
}
My problem is that i don't want the two TextFields to appear on the right of Activate and Deactivate buttons but below them. How can i fix that?
Specify your layout manager, like this:
content.setLayout(new GridLayout(2,2));
That would use the Grid Layout Manager to establish a grid with 2 columns and 2 rows, that your components would then be placed in.
The layout manager you are currently using, FlowLayout, only adds contents onto the end of the current row. it will wrap around once it reaches the constrained edge of the pane, though.
You should also check the other layout managers here
You could alternatively use GridBagLayout , but you will have to specify a GridBagConstraints object you then add alongside the individual elements, like so:
content.add(networkIdField, gridConstraints);
see more on that in the linked tutorial.
can I suggest that you use a Null Layout for the parent component?
setLayout(null);
then use a setBounds(xPos,yPos, Width, Height);
to position the components on the panel etc?
Doing this will prevent Java's UI Manager to manage the components to the Frame, Panel etc.
That seems to be the easiest and less painful way.
Regards

Please help me understanding BoxLayout alignment issues

I'm trying to create a very simple window using Java Layouts. I have got three elements to arrange: a button, a progress bar and a label. The button has to be vertically centered, the progress bar has to take full width, and the label has to be left aligned.
Here's some code (just assume pane is the content pane of a JFrame, and button, progressBar and label have been created before):
BoxLayout layout = new BoxLayout(pane, BoxLayout.Y_AXIS);
pane.setLayout(layout);
button.setAlignmentX(Component.CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
pane.add(button);
progressBar.setAlignmentX(Component.CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
pane.add(progressBar);
label.setAlignmentX(Component.LEFT_ALIGNMENT);
pane.add(label);
When I test the application I see everything misaligned and screwed up: the button and the label are randomly indented, and if I resize the window the indentation amount changes in a strange way.
The progress bar looks good (full width).
I just don't understand what's happening. Can you give me a clue?
BoxLayout cannot handle different alignments: see http://download.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/uiswing/layout/box.html
quoting from that article: "In general, all the components controlled by a top-to-bottom BoxLayout object should have the same X alignment. Similarly, all the components controlled by a left-to-right Boxlayout should generally have the same Y alignment."
Sometimes you need to get a little creative and use nested panels. But I like this approach better then trying to learn and memorize all the constraints required when using other layout managers (GridBagLayout, GroupLayout) there where designed to be used by IDE's that generate code for you.
import java.awt.*;
import javax.swing.*;
public class BoxLayoutVertical extends JFrame
{
public BoxLayoutVertical()
{
Box box = Box.createVerticalBox();
JButton button = new JButton("A button");
button.setAlignmentX(Component.CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
box.add(button);
JProgressBar progressBar = new JProgressBar(0, 100);
progressBar.setAlignmentX(Component.CENTER_ALIGNMENT);
box.add(progressBar);
JPanel panel = new JPanel( new BorderLayout() );
JLabel label = new JLabel("A label");
label.setAlignmentX(Component.LEFT_ALIGNMENT);
panel.add(label);
box.add(panel);
add(box, BorderLayout.NORTH);
}
public static void main(String[] args)
{
BoxLayoutVertical frame = new BoxLayoutVertical();
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation( EXIT_ON_CLOSE );
frame.setSize(300, 200);
frame.setLocationRelativeTo( null );
frame.setVisible(true);
}
}
To complement my comment to the original question, here is a snippet that uses DesignGridLayout:
JButton button = new JButton("Button");
JProgressBar progressBar = new JProgressBar();
JLabel label = new JLabel("Label");
// The interesting stuff is in the next 4 lines
DesignGridLayout layout = new DesignGridLayout(getContentPane());
layout.row().center().add(button).withOwnRowWidth();
layout.row().center().fill().add(progressBar);
layout.row().left().add(label);
pack();
It does exactly what wou describe in your question and doesn't require any specific call of any of the components.
Maybe your code is just a snippet, but I'm missing a call to pack().
Coding swing layout by hand can be very frustrating with the standard Layout managers. I use MiG Layout for that purpose. It is straight forward and you have a nice layout with just a few lines of code. If you're not forced to use BoxLayout I would suggest you give it a try.
Don't use BoxLayout. It works only for very simple cases.
For your case, I would recommend either GridBagLayout or (my favorite) GroupLayout.
For GroupLayout, I created a subclass (LayoutHelper) with some utility methods and useful constructors, which makes writing the Layout much easier.
Of course, usually I align all components in a group the same way, so it is not as short in your case as it would be in the simple case.
LayoutHelper h = new LayoutHelper(pane);
h.setVerticalGroup
( h.sequential( button, progressBar, label));
h.setHorizontalGroup
( ((ParallelGroup)h.parallel())
.addComponent(button, Alignment.CENTER)
.addComponent(progressBar)
.addComponent(label, Alignment.TRAILING));
Here is a screenshot:
For a simple "everything aligned the same way", the horizontal group would look like this:
h.setHorizontalGroup
( h.parallel (button, progressBar, label));
(optionally with a first argument indicating the alignment).

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