Can't resize JLabels in BoxLayout - java

I'm trying to set up a few JLabels to use as buttons inside a BoxLayout, stacked on top of each other. The layout is fine, but I'm finding that I can't resize the labels to the dimensions I want. I'm using the following code to size them:
JLabel fileAddBtn = new JLabel("Add File", SwingConstants.CENTER);
fileAddBtn.setBorder(BorderFactory.createLineBorder(Color.black));
fileAddBtn.setMaximumSize(new Dimension(Integer.MAX_VALUE, fileAddBtn.getMinimumSize().height));
and
JLabel fileRemBtn = new JLabel("Remove File", SwingConstants.CENTER);
fileRemBtn.setBorder(BorderFactory.createLineBorder(Color.black));
fileRemBtn.setMaximumSize(new Dimension(Integer.MAX_VALUE, fileRemBtn.getMinimumSize().height));
As of now I have two labels, with one being longer than the other. They are both taking the width of the longer label, which is good, but the labels are hugging the edges of the text right to the nearest pixel. Is there any way to make the labels a little bigger so that there is a bit of a border around the labels? I've tried using setSize() but it doesn't take. I've also added straight values into the above code, but it doesn't change them either. I tried adding an EmptyBorder() around them, which worked for sizing, but it hid my line border which surrounds them. Any thoughts?

Is there any way to make the labels a little bigger so that there is a bit of a border around the labels?
Sure. Add an EmptyBorder.
But since the code is already adding a border to the labels, to retain that line border, make a CompoundBorder consisting of the empty border and the line border, and set the compound border to the label.
See also Should I avoid the use of set(Preferred|Maximum|Minimum)Size methods in Java Swing? (Yes.)

Related

Why are all my labels spaced by like 4 tabs while being boderLayout WEST?

I have a JPrame and it it set to borderLayout. Then i created another JPnael which uses BoxLayout. Now i have added labels(which contain text) and textFields to the JPanel. I have also setLayout of JPanel to WEST. Now i dont know why, but I have two problems with what is being displayed.
1) The labels are all indented 4-5 tab spaces, this is so random I dont even know why it is tabbed. All the labels in this panel are like this. Please note that this only happens if I add more stuff to the JPanel. If I only have 1 label in the JPanel it is correctly alligned to the west corner of the screen. Does anyone know why they get indented when i add more elements to the JPanel?
2)The Textfields size are huge, as in they take up many lines. I have set the size of the text fields only to 20. Yet they take up like 5 lines. Why is it not just a single line?
Im sorry guys, I have been trying to fix this for the past 2 hours and dont know what is causing this issue. I would post code, but this is an assignment and I dont feel comfortable posting it on to the internet. I hope you understand.
Just to make things clear, I have a JPanel for example called "aPanel" which is set to BorderLayout then I have another JPanel called 'subPanel' which uses boxlayout and set the layout of that to be west. After this I add stuff to this 'subPanel' expecting the elements to stack over eacher other towards the left border of the JFrame.
1) Read the section from the Swing tutorial on Fixing Alignment Problems. When you add different components to the panel they may have different "X alignment" so you get a different layout than you expect.
2) The box layout will expand to fill the available space. So you need to override the getMaximumSize() method of you text fields to return the preferred height of the text field and the maxiumum width of the text field.
Edit:
Just read the last part where you mention a FlowLayout. If this is what you are using then read the FlowLayout API. It has a parameter that controls left/center/right alignment of components added to the panel.

Get a Fixed sized GridLayout

I need to make a fixed sized for a GridLayout with 100 buttons located in the center portion of a BorderLayout. On the east portion of the border layout is another Gridlayout that keeps shrinking the center component whenever the text is longer then the size of the current JTextAreas located in the east. The JFrame is not resizable also.
Is there a way to get a fixed size for the center component while allowing the JTextArea to still expand?
"I need to make a fixed sized for a GridLayout with 100 buttons located in the center portion of a BorderLayout".
Sorry, but that's not going to work. BorderLayout doesn't work like that. You can nest JPanel containers with different Layout managers to get your desired effect.
"Gridlayout that keeps shrinking the center component whenever the text is longer then the size of the current JTextAreas located in the east."
You should wrap your text area in a JScrollPane, and setLineWrap(true) and setWrapStyleWord(true) on you text area. The last two will set it, so that the line typed wraps when it is reaching the right edge of the text area. Also If you are setting the size to the text area, don't. Instead, use the following constructor to set its size
JTextArea jta = new JTextArea(20, 50); <--- rows, and character columns
jta.setLineWrap(true);
jta.setWrapStyleWord(true);
JScrollPane scroll = new JScrollPane(jta);
container.add(scroll); <--- make sure you don add jta anywhere else
Without more context to your querstion, these are really the only valid suggestions I can make.

Java Swing, making a gridlayout fill parent?

I just recently started using Swing to create GUIs for programs, and it's been pretty fun to mess around with so far. However, I'm having an issue with a JPanel with the layout set to gridLayout. Right now it looks like this:
The grid on the right is a JPanel set to a GridLayout, with each cell being a bordered JLabel. The options on the left are also inside a JPanel, and the left JPanel and right JPanel are nested in a GridBagLayout set on a JFrame.
Essentially, my problem is that I want to "scale" the grid on the right so that each cell is a certain height and width. The grid itself will have a variable number of rows and columns, which are set when the program first starts up. Eventually, I plan to have the right JPanel in a JScrollPane (if that's how that works...), so I'm not really concerned about whether or not all of the grid shows up onScreen.
I tried setting the fill value for the gridLayout to "BOTH" and it gave me the following result:
This is closer to my intention, but I wanted the actual ImageIcon in the JLabels to fill the entire JLabel. Additionally, I would want the JLabels to be the same height and width. However, I don't know exactly how to do that. I've been messing around with it for a while now, and I'm not sure if I'm just too much of a noob with Swing, or if I'm missing something in the documentation.
In the end, I'd like the grid cells to be a fixed height and width, no matter the number of cells, and no matter whether it goes offscreen or doesn't fill it.
(Also, I just thought, maybe it's not the best idea to code this and then shove it in a JScrollPane later and expect it to perform the same.... I guess I'll just see what happens.)
but I wanted the actual ImageIcon in the JLabels to fill the entire JLabel.
Check out Darryl's Stretch Icon which will allow the icon to resize to file the space available for the JLabel.

Draw a Jpanel's border without resizing content (Java)

I have a column of JPanel instances that has content in it, that when it is clicked, the selected Panel is set to have a border (in order to distinguish it), and only 1 at a time has the border.
The problem is that when it sets the border, it sets the outer section of the panel to the border, and shrinks the content inside. Although it seems minor it is not very professional, and I would much rather have it add more like an overlay, where the content will not shrink.
I am thinking maybe there is some method of graphics that will let me do this? I haven't been able to find any way of doing this.
Start by setting all the components to have a EmptyBorder set to a single pixel inset.
When you select a panel, simply set the newly selected panel's border as you are (presumably using a LineBorder) and the set the previously selected panel's border to the single pixel EmptyBorder.
If you're clever, you could get away with a single instance of EmptyBorder ;)

java border gui

I am not good with GUIs or User Interfaces in Java.
Would a Border or JPanel be good for something like the image below?
So, what would be the best option for me? Thank you.
Read the section from the Swing tutorial on Using Layout Managers. You can easily nest panels to get the desired effect.
Maybe start with a BorderLayout. Then you can add a panel that uses a GridLayout, which contains all your image tiles, to the CENTER of the BorderLayout. Then you can add the scrollpane containing the text area to the SOUTH. Then you can create another panel to add to the EAST.
Be creative and experiment.
You can make 4 seperate panels for a border, using BorderLayout.NORTH,BorderLayout.EAST,BorderLayout.SOUTH,and BorderLayout.WEST, This is the easiest way in my opinion.
By the way, in the top right of your picture, where you wanted the information panel, you should put an information LABEL (JLabel) instead, because they hold text. JLabel topRight = new JLabel(); then set the text, position, etc.
p.s. to erase the borders around every tile (if you want to do so), use setBorderPainted(false).

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