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JPanels not being drawn

I'm working on a vertical scrolling game, and I'm using a thread to generate new enemies every 2 seconds. Each enemy is an image in a JPanel. For some reason, The generated enemies are not showing up in the JFrame, but they are present. When the player collides with one of the enemies, all the enemies show up.
Here's the code:
private void checkCollision() {
for(AlienShip as : enemies) {
if(player.getBounds().intersects(as.getBounds()))
player.setVisible(false);
}
}
private void setAlien() {
alien = new AlienShip();
add(alien);
enemies.add(alien);
System.out.println("Enemies: " + enemies.size());
}
public Thread alienGenerator() {
for(int i = 0; i < 3; i++) { // these are being drawn
setAlien();
}
return new Thread(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
int sleepTime = 2000;
while(true) {
try {
Thread.sleep(sleepTime);
} catch(InterruptedException e) {
System.out.println(e);
}
setAlien(); //these aren't
}
}
});
}
private void gameLoop() {
alienGenerator().start();
mainTimer = new Timer(50, new ActionListener() {
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
repaint();
checkCollision();
}
});
mainTimer.start();
}

It always seems that you're Darned If You Do And Darned If You Don't. As far as I'm concerned the code you had placed in your earlier post was adequate, as a matter of fact, it was still lacking (no PlayerShip Class). The code example in this post does even less justice. Never the less......
Before I get started I just want you to know that I personally would have tackled this task somewhat differently and the meager assistance provided here will be solely based on the code you have already provided in this and previous posts.
The reason you are not seeing your Alien Ships displaying onto the Game Board upon creation is because you don't revalidate the board panel. As you currently have your code now this can be done from within the Board.setAlien() method where the Alien Ships are added. Directly under the code lines:
alien = new AlienShip();
add(alien);
enemies.add(alien);
add the code line: revalidate();, so the code would look like this:
alien = new AlienShip();
add(alien);
enemies.add(alien);
revalidate();
Your Alien Ships should now display.
On A Side Note:
What is to happen when any Alien Ship actually makes it to the bottom of the Game Board? As a suggestion, have them re-spawn to the top of the game board (serves ya right fer missin em). This can be done from within the AlienShip.scrollShip() method by checking to see if the Alien Ship has reached the bottom of the board, for example:
public void scrollShip() {
if (getY() + 1 > this.getParent().getHeight()) {
setY(0 - PANEL_HEIGHT);
}
else {
setY(getY() + 1);
}
}
In my opinion, PANEL_HEIGHT is the wrong field name to use. I think it would be more appropriate to use something like ALIEN_SHIP_WIDTH and ALIEN_SHIP_HEIGHT. Same for the variables panelX and panelY, could be alienShipX and alienShipY. Food for thought.
As you can see in the code above the current Game Board height is acquired by polling the Game Board's getHeight() method with: this.getParent().getHeight(). This allows you to change the Game Board size at any time and the Alien Ships will know where that current boundary is when scrolling down. All this then means that the setResizable(false); property setting done in the Main Class for the Game's JFrame window can now be resizable: setResizable(true);.
You will also notice that when the Alien Ship is re-spawned at top of the Game Board it is actually out of site and it flows into view as it moves downward. I think this is a much smoother transition into the gaming area rather than just popping into view. This is accomplished with the setY(0 - PANEL_HEIGHT); code line above. As a matter of fact even when the game initially starts, your Alien Ships should flow into the the gaming area this way and that can be done from within the AlienShip.initAlienShip() method by initializing the panelY variable to panelY = -PANEL_HEIGHT;.
This now takes me to the initialization of the PANEL_WIDTH and PANEL_HEIGHT fields. The values seem enormous (224 and 250 respectively). Of course you may have set to these sizes for collision testing purposes, etc but I think an image size of 64 x 35 would most likely suffice:
This image should be a PNG image with a transparent background which then eliminates the need for the setBackground(Color.BLUE); code line located within the AlienShip.initAlienShip() method.
The AlienShip.getX() and AlienShip.getY() methods should be overridden:
#Override
public int getX() { ... }
#Override
public int getY() { ... }
I think extending the AlienShip Class to JLabel would be better than to JPanel. To JPanel seems like overkill:
public class AlienShip extends JLabel { ... }
Adding a background image to the Game Board can add pizazz to the game. This can be achieved by adding the following code to the Board.paintComponent() method:
#Override
public void paintComponent(Graphics g) {
super.paintComponent(g);
ImageIcon imgIcon = new ImageIcon("images/StarBackground.png");
Image img = imgIcon.getImage();
g.drawImage(img, 0, 0, this.getSize().width, this.getSize().height, this);
}
Images can be acquired here.
This should keep you going for a while. Before to long it'll be Alien mayhem.

Java Drawing Multiple Squares in Same JFrame

I am trying to make an animation with multiple thread. I want to paint n squares where this n comes from commend-line argument. Every square has their x-y coordinates, colors and speed. They are moving to the right of the frame with different speed, color and coordinates. Since I am using multi thread I assume I have to control each squares. So I have to store each square object in the ArrayList. However, I am having trouble with painting those squares. I can paint one square but when I try to paint multiple squares, it does not show. Here what I have done so far:
DrawSquare.java
import java.awt.Graphics;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
public class DrawSquare extends JPanel {
public Square square;
public DrawSquare() {
square = new Square();
}
#Override
public void paintComponents(Graphics g) {
// TODO Auto-generated method stub
super.paintComponents(g);
}
#Override
public void paint(Graphics g) {
// TODO Auto-generated method stub
super.paint(g);
g.setColor(square.getC());
g.fillRect(square.getX(), square.getY(), square.getR(), square.getR());
}
}
Square.java
import java.awt.Color;
import java.util.Random;
public class Square {
private int x,y,r,s;
private Color c;
private Random random;
public Square() {
random = new Random();
x = random.nextInt(100) + 30;
y = random.nextInt(100) + 30;
r = random.nextInt(50) + 20;
s = random.nextInt(20) + 5;
c = new Color(random.nextInt(255),random.nextInt(255),random.nextInt(255));
}
public int getX() {
return x;
}
public int getY() {
return y;
}
public int getR() {
return r;
}
public int getS() {
return s;
}
public Color getC() {
return c;
}
}
Animation.java
import java.awt.BorderLayout;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
import javax.swing.JPanel;
public class Animation extends JFrame implements Runnable {
private JPanel panel;
private DrawSquare square;
public Animation() {
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
Animation w = new Animation();
DrawSquare square = new DrawSquare();
JFrame f = new JFrame("Week 9");
int n = Integer.parseInt(args[0]);
f.setVisible(true);
f.setSize(700,700);
f.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
f.setResizable(false);
for(int i=0; i<n; i++) {
f.getContentPane().add(square);
}
}
#Override
public void run() {
// TODO Auto-generated method stub
}
}

So, starting with...
public class DrawSquare extends JPanel {
public Square square;
public DrawSquare() {
square = new Square();
}
#Override
public void paintComponents(Graphics g) {
// TODO Auto-generated method stub
super.paintComponents(g);
}
#Override
public void paint(Graphics g) {
// TODO Auto-generated method stub
super.paint(g);
g.setColor(square.getC());
g.fillRect(square.getX(), square.getY(), square.getR(), square.getR());
}
}
As general recommendation, it's preferred to put custom painting in the paintComponent method (note, there's no s at the end)
When paint is called, the Graphics context has already been translated to the component coordinate position. This means that 0x0 is the top/left corner of the component, this also means that...
g.fillRect(square.getX(), square.getY(), square.getR(), square.getR());
is painting the rect at x + x x y + y, which will, at the very least, paint the rect in the wrong position, at worst paint it beyond the visible scope of the component.
You're also not providing any sizing hints for the component, so it's default size will be 0x0, which prevent it from been painted.
Since I am using multi thread I assume I have to control each squares.
Well, since I can't really see what's driving the animation, I imagine that when you say "multi thread" you're suggesting that each square has it's own Thread. In this case, that's a bad idea. Let's put aside the thread synchronisation issues for a moment, more threads doesn't equate to more work you can do, at some point, it will begin to degrade the system performance.
In most cases, a single, well managed thread, is all you really need. You also have to understand that Swing is NOT thread safe. This means that you shouldn't update the UI (or states that the UI relies on) from outside the context of the Event Dispatching Thread.
So, while you're thread can update the position of the rects, you need to take care to ensure that they are not been painted while they are been update. Once you've updated the state, you then need to trigger a paint pass (which is trivial in of itself)
So I have to store each square object in the ArrayList.
Yep, good start
However, I am having trouble with painting those squares. I can paint one square but when I try to paint multiple squares, it does not show.
Okay, so instead of using multiple components, use one. Run through your ArrayList within the paintComponent method of this component and paint all the rects to it. This provides a much simpler way to manage things like bounds detection, as you have only one container to worry about.
I'd highly recommend you have a look at:
Java Bouncing Ball which demonstrates many of the concepts discussed here
Concurrency in Swing
How to use Swing Timers
Performing Custom Painting
Painting in AWT and Swing

Display moving blocks in a JFrame

I have a class that creates a JFrame on which a simple game of Tetris will be played, I also have a class DrawSquare, which does exactly what you think it does, however when I initialise a new instance of the DrawSquare class and then try to draw that one and all the others to my JFrame things start to go wrong, the code is intended for one square to be drawn in the top left hand corner and then drop down a line at a time until it reaches the bottom of the frame (it does this), then a new square should be drawn in the second column at the top of the frame, as well as our first square in the bottom left hand corner, however once it starts dropping down the second column I get a series of squares drawn in a diagonal towards the top right hand corner. At the moment all I plan for the code to do is have a square drop from the top row of each column and stop when it reaches the bottom of the frame, am I storing the instance of the class at the wrong point in the code? Edit: In fact I'm pretty sure it's that, I'd want to store that instance when it reaches the bottom. Does every instance of the class need its own timer?
public class Tetris extends JFrame {
public static final int height = 20; //height of a square
public static final int width = 20; //width of a square
public int xPos = 0; //column number of the square
public int yPos = 0; //row number of the square
public static void main(String[] args){
Tetris tet = new Tetris();
}
public Tetris() {
DrawSquare square = new DrawSquare(xPos, yPos, width, height, false);
add(square);
DrawSquare.squares.add(square);
setSize(220,440);
setLocationRelativeTo(null);
setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
setVisible(true);
}
}
public class DrawSquare extends JPanel {
public static List<DrawSquare> squares = new ArrayList<>();
protected int xPos;
protected int yPos;
protected int width;
protected int height;
protected Timer timer = new Timer(200, new TimerListener());
protected boolean endFall = false;
public DrawSquare(int xPos, int yPos, int width, int height, boolean endFall) {
this.xPos = xPos;
this.yPos = yPos;
this.width = width;
this.height = height;
this.endFall = endFall;
this.timer.start();
}
class TimerListener implements ActionListener {
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
yPos++;
if (yPos > 19) {
yPos = 19;
endFall = true;
}
if (endFall == true) {
timer.stop();
if (xPos > 8) {
xPos = 8;
}
xPos++;
endFall = false;
yPos = 0;
DrawSquare newSqr = new DrawSquare(xPos, yPos, width, height, true);
squares.add(newSqr);
add(newSqr);
}
timer.start();
repaint();
}
}
protected void paintComponent(Graphics g) {
super.paintComponent(g);
Iterator<DrawSquare> it = squares.iterator();
while (it.hasNext()) {
DrawSquare square = it.next();
g.fillRect(square.xPos * square.width, square.yPos * square.height, square.width, square.height);
}
}
}

You are giving a great example of the fundamental misunderstanding beginners have of how the swing (and many other graphics toolkits) render stuff to the screen. I will give an overview of that, as it pertains to you, then answer your immediate questions and explain how to fix your code.
It took me a (very long) while to figure out how this stuff works my self, so please bear with me. I hope that reading through this answer will help you in a much more general way than answering this one question.
Asynchronous Drawing
Swing draws windows in a totally different sequence (the event dispatching thread) than the ones that modifies the state of your program (the main thread, as well as timer and other threads). You can modify the coordinates of things you want to draw as many times as you like in the main thread, but the changes will not show up until you request them to by calling JComponent.repaint() on one of your components. This will generally trigger a nearly-immediate repaint of the component, displaying your latest state.
If you change the coordinates of a widget like a JPanel in your main thread, it will likely show up immediately. This is because the methods you use to set the position will trigger repaint requests internally.
A repaint request gets queued and eventually processed by the event dispatching thread. This is where the paintComponent method gets called. The paintComponent method should therefore only draw. It should not do any other logic. If it needs to know how to draw some specialized stuff, the information for that should be stashed somewhere accessible by one of the other threads.
In short, you make calculations and update state as you need in the main thread or the timer. Then you access that state in the event dispatching thread via the paintComponent method.
Timers
There are a bunch of ways you can use timers to run your GUI, but you only really need one for the current application. In your case, the timer only needs to do two things:
Check if a block has fallen all the way down and doesn't need to move any more.
Trigger a repaint of your panel.
You do not need to compute the updated position of the blocks in the timer if the block's position is a simple equation with respect to time. If you know the time at which a block appears on the screen and the current time, you know how far the block has moved, so you can paint it in the correct spot based purely on the elapsed time.
If you had a more complicated system with paths that you could not predict purely on the time, I would recommend sticking the movement logic into the timer events as well. In that case, you might consider having multiple timers, or switching to java.util.timer. But again, this does not apply to your current case (even with multiple blocks).
Model and View
The model of your program is the thing that holds the abstract state. In this case, the positions and other meta-data about all your blocks. The view is the part that does the rendering. It is usually a good idea to separate these two things. There is often a third component to GUIs, called the controller, which connects the model and view to the user. We will ignore it here since you are not asking about controlling the blocks yet.
In your current code, you have attempted to represent your blocks with an extension to JPanel and a static list of existing blocks. While a JPanel may be a convenient way to display rectangular blocks with some custom graphics in them (like icons), I would recommend that you start by drawing the blocks directly using the Graphics object passed to paintComponent. At least initially, it will help you to think of the drawing code and the game logic as separate entities.
Final Rant Before Code Dump
I have made rewrites to your code to encapsulate all the ranting I did before into code. Here are some additional minor points about what I did that may help explain my reasoning:
When you call JFrame.add(...) to add a component to a JFrame, you are really calling JFrame.getContentPane().add(...). The content pane is where 90% of normal swing components go in a window. Therefore, we can either set the JPanel that will do the rendering as your content pane or we can add it to the current content pane. I have chosen to do the latter so that you can add other widgets, like a score board, at a later time.
Class names should generally be nouns, while methods are often verbs. This is not an absolute rule (nothing really is), but naming things this way will often help you visualize the interactions between objects in a more meaningful way. I have renamed DrawSquare to GamePiece for this reason.
There is no longer any reason for GamePiece to be a JPanel. It just needs to know its own width, height, and time of appearance.
The other problem with trying to have DrawSquare draw itself is that a component can only really draw within its own bounding box. So you really want to override the paintComponent of whatever holds the rectangles.
The rendering class maintains a reference to two lists of GamePieces. One is for the moving objects and one is for the ones that have fallen. The logic for moving them between the lists is in the timer. This is better than say adding a flag to GamePiece because it facilitates incremental repaint. I will only partially illustrate this here, but there is a version of repaint that only requests a small region to be painted. This would be useful to speed up the movement.
Code
public class Tetris extends JFrame
{
public static final int height = 20; //height of a square
public static final int width = 20; //width of a square
public static final int x = 0;
private GamePanel gamePanel;
public static void main(String[] args)
{
Tetris tet = new Tetris();
// Normally you would tie this to a button or some other user-triggered action.
tet.gamePanel.start();
tet.gamePanel.addPiece(new GamePiece(width, height, x));
}
public Tetris()
{
getContentPane().setLayout(new BorderLayout());
gamePanel = GamePanel();
add(gamePanel, BorderLayout.CENTER);
setSize(220,440);
setLocationRelativeTo(null);
setDefaultCloseOperation(EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
setVisible(true);
}
}
public class GamePanel extends JPanel
{
private List<GamePiece> moving;
private List<GamePiece> still;
private Timer timer;
public GamePanel()
{
moving = new ArrayList<>();
still = new ArrayList<>();
timer = new Timer(100, new TimerListener());
}
public addPiece(int width, int height, int x)
{
moving.add(new GamePiece(width, height, x));
}
public void start()
{
timer.start();
}
#Override
public void paintComponent(Graphics g)
{
Rectangle clip = g.getClipBounds(null);
Rectangle rectToDraw = new Rectangle();
// I prefer this, but you can make the call every
// time you call `GamePiece.getY()`
long time = System.currentTimeMillis();
for(GamePiece piece : this.moving) {
rectToDraw.setSize(piece.width, piece.height)
rectToDraw.setLocation(piece.x, piece.getY(time))
if(rectangleToDraw.intersects(clip))
((Graphics2D)g).fill(rectToDraw)
}
for(GamePiece piece : this.still) {
rectToDraw.setSize(piece.width, piece.height)
rectToDraw.setLocation(piece.x, piece.getY(time))
if(rectangleToDraw.intersects(clip))
((Graphics2D)g).fill(rectToDraw)
}
}
private class TimerListener implements ActionListener
{
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e)
{
long time = System.currentTimeMillis();
// Using non-iterator loop to move the pieces that
// stopped safely. Iterator would crash on in-loop move.
for(int i = 0; i < moving.size(); i++) {
piece = moving.get(i);
if(piece.getY(time) > 440 - piece.height) {
moving.remove(i);
still.add(piece);
i--;
}
}
repaint();
}
}
}
public class GamePiece
{
public final int width;
public final int height;
public final long startTime;
public int x;
public GamePiece(int width, int height, int x)
{
this.width = width;
this.height = height;
this.startTime = System.currentTimeMillis();
this.x = x;
}
public int getY(long time)
{
// This hard-codes a velocity of 10px/sec. You could
// implement a more complex relationship with time here.
return (int)((time - this.startTime) / 100.0);
}
}

Your main problem in a nutshell: you need to separate the JPanel component class from the square logical class. Right now, they are one and the same, and every time you create a new DrawSqaure, you're creating a new JPanel, starting a new Swing Timer, and thus calling code that doesn't need to be called. This is also forcing you to make the List static else you'd have a stack overflow error. Solution: separate the two out, make your List non-static, and use only one Swing Timer.

Draw and move a circle in Java

I'm using Swing to create a small GUI in Java. All I am trying to get it to do is take an ArrayListof Circles and draw them. I've run into two problems:
1) I have to call my draw method repeatedly before it draws the circle. If I just call my draw method once nothing happens, I get a blank drawing. If I call it in a loop that runs for less than 30 milliseconds it only draws the first of two circles that I want to draw. Finally, if I call it for more than 30 milliseconds it draws both circles I am trying to draw.
and
2) When I move one of the circles, I get a "flicker" on the drawing.
I'm not too familiar with Swing programming. I've looked at sample code and watched a few videos - and what I have looks right to me. But I figure I must have messed something up, because it doesn't look like this in the videos I've watched.
Here is my GUI class:
package gui;
import draw.*;
import java.util.List;
import javax.swing.*;
public class GUI extends JFrame {
private CirclePainter drawingBoard = new CirclePainter();
public GUI()
{
setSize(500, 500);
this.setDefaultCloseOperation(WindowConstants.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
this.setVisible(true);
this.add(drawingBoard);
drawingBoard.setVisible(true);
}
public void draw(List<Circle> circles)
{
drawingBoard.paintComponent(drawingBoard.getGraphics(), circles);
}
}
my CirclePainter class
package gui;
import draw.Circle;
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.util.List;
class CirclePainter extends JPanel
{
public void paintComponent(Graphics graphics, List<Circle> circles)
{
super.paintComponent(graphics);
for(Circle circle : circles)
graphics.fillOval(circle.getX(), circle.getY(), circle.getRadius() * 2, circle.getRadius() * 2);
}
}
EDIT: redacted some code since this is for a school project. The remaining code should be enough for someone visiting in the future to still understand the question.

Never call paintComponent(...) directly as you're doing.
Instead suggest a draw by calling repaint() on a component when necessary.
Don't draw with a Graphics object obtained via a getGraphics() call on a component. Instead, draw with the Graphics object provided in the paintComponent method.
Avoid using while (true) loops in a Swing GUI as you risk tying up the Swing event thread and freezing the GUI. Use a Swing Timer for simple animations.
You probably don't even need a Swing Timer since your animation can be driven by your MouseListener/MouseMotionListener.
Most important -- do read the Swing painting and other tutorials, as most of this information can be found there. It looks like you're guessing how to do some of your coding and that's a dangerous thing to do when it comes to drawing or animating a GUI. You can find most tutorials in the Swing info link.
Consider using a Shape object to represent your Circle, such as an ellipse2D. The reason that this will help is that it has some very useful methods, including a contains(Point p) method that will help you determine if a mouse click lands inside of your circle.
You will want to decide where _x and _y represent the center point of your circle or not. If so, then you'll need to adjust your drawing some, by shifting it left and up by _radius amount.
Consider casting your Graphics object into a Graphics2D object in order to use its extra methods and properties.
One such property are the RenderingHings. Set your Graphics2D RenderingHints to allow for anti-aliasing to get rid of your image "jaggies". This can be done with: g2.setRenderingHint(RenderingHints.KEY_ANTIALIASING,
RenderingHints.VALUE_ANTIALIAS_ON); where g2 is your Graphics2D object.
Your paintComponent method is not a true paintComponent override and thus won't work correctly. It should be a protected method, not public, it should have one parameter, a Graphics object, and nto a second parameter, and you should place the #Override annotation above it.
For example, please have a look at this answer of mine to a similar problem.
An example of a paintComponent method that centers the circles on _x and _y and that uses rendering hints:
class CirclePainter extends JPanel implements Iterable<Circle> {
private static final int PREF_W = 500;
private static final int PREF_H = PREF_W;
private CircleList circleList = new CircleList();
#Override
protected void paintComponent(Graphics graphics) {
super.paintComponent(graphics);
Graphics2D g2 = (Graphics2D) graphics;
g2.setRenderingHint(RenderingHints.KEY_ANTIALIASING,
RenderingHints.VALUE_ANTIALIAS_ON);
for (Circle circle : circleList) {
// if x and y are the center points, then you must subtract the radius.
int x = circle.getX() - circle.getRadius();
int y = circle.getY() - circle.getRadius();
int width = circle.getRadius() * 2;
int height = width;
g2.fillOval(x, y, width, height);
}
}

Building on your code and the suggestions from Hovercraft Full Of Eels, a small step in the right direction could be taken with these modifications to the GUI and CirclePainter classes:
// GUI.draw
public void draw(List<Circle> circles)
{
// drawingBoard.paintComponent(drawingBoard.getGraphics(), circles);
drawingBoard.setCircles(circles);
drawingBoard.repaint();
}
class CirclePainter extends JPanel
{
// public void paintComponent(Graphics graphics, List<Circle> circles)
// {
// super.paintComponent(graphics);
// for(Circle circle : circles)
// graphics.fillOval(circle.getX(), circle.getY(), circle.getRadius() * 2, circle.getRadius() * 2);
// }
private List<Circle> circles;
public void setCircles(final List<Circle> circles) {
this.circles = circles;
}
#Override
protected void paintComponent(final Graphics graphics) {
super.paintComponent(graphics);
for (Circle circle : circles)
graphics.fillOval(circle.getX(), circle.getY(), circle.getRadius() * 2, circle.getRadius() * 2);
}
}
This way, you might not have fixed all the fundamental issues, but you get your program to work with only minor changes. And Swing is a very nice library that can be much fun to learn more about.

How do I make this mouselistener only care about one object?

I'm working on these online Stanford lessons on Java, and we just made the leap to events, and I'm having difficulty wrapping my head around it. I'm playing around with a program that is in the "Art and Science of Java" book. This program will move a rectangle and oval around on the canvas if you click on them.
I modified the run method to try and get the listener to only work on the rectangle, but I was surprised to see even with my changes, both objects are being listened to...why?
Original run method:
public void run() {
GRect rect = new GRect(100, 100, 150, 100);
rect.setFilled(true);
rect.setColor(Color.RED);
add(rect);
GOval oval = new GOval(300, 115, 100, 70);
oval.setFilled(true);
oval.setColor(Color.GREEN);
add(oval);
addMouseListeners();
}
My changed program (with the MouseListener in the private createRectangle method):
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import acm.graphics.*;
import acm.program.*;
/** This class displays a mouse-draggable rectangle and oval */
public class DragObjects extends GraphicsProgram {
public void run() {
createRectangle();
createOval();
}
private void createOval(){
GOval oval = new GOval(300, 115, 100, 70);
oval.setFilled(true);
oval.setColor(Color.GREEN);
add(oval);
}
private void createRectangle(){
GRect rect = new GRect(100, 100, 150, 100);
rect.setFilled(true);
rect.setColor(Color.RED);
add(rect);
addMouseListeners();
}
/** Called on mouse press to record the coordinates of the click */
public void mousePressed(MouseEvent e) {
lastX = e.getX();
lastY = e.getY();
gobj = getElementAt(lastX, lastY);
}
/** Called on mouse drag to reposition the object */
public void mouseDragged(MouseEvent e) {
if (gobj != null) {
gobj.move(e.getX() - lastX, e.getY() - lastY);
lastX = e.getX();
lastY = e.getY();
}
}
/** Called on mouse click to move this object to the front */
public void mouseClicked(MouseEvent e) {
if (gobj != null) gobj.sendToFront();
}
/* Instance variables */
private GObject gobj; /* The object being dragged */
private double lastX; /* The last mouse X position */
private double lastY; /* The last mouse Y position */
}

It would be helpful if you would point out that the method addMouseListeners() is in the superclass, GraphicsProgram. What it does is adds the listener to the canvas, not just to the individual shape. From there, you'll need to somehow determine whether the mouseclick occurred in the rectangle or in the oval.
Or there might be a way to add the listener just to a single shape. Check the Javadoc for the GRect and GOval classes. I'm assuming those are also in one of the acm.* packages, which means they're not built in to the Java language. (This is why I recommend using an IDE like Eclipse that can automatically import each class automatically, instead of importing an entire package.)
It might also be helpful to post a link to the online lessons you're following.

I haven't looked at the source other than what you have posted. But you will need to other modify gOval and gRect or a superclass to accept a mouseListener, or in your listener do something like the following.
in the MouseClicked, MouseMoved, etc. methods. Get the point of the event, and then go through your Objects and query them to see if the point exists withing their bounds.
You would need a list of objects to loop through and then call something like gRect.containsPoint(myPoint) in this method check to see if the point exists in the shape. You will still have issues where shapes overlap, so you will need some concept of a z-axis or depth to determine which shape is on top.

You need to post the source for the addMouseListeners.
If you take a look at this post over here you might get some ideas on how listeners can work (if you post the addMouseListener source we can help with your specific question of course!)