Develop Reference

I don't understand this java behaviour

I had a question about making a JButton flash colors ,like you would see when an answer was given in millionaire tv show. I got the answer there on how to do it properly but I also managed to "do it" in this way which raised some questions I couldn't answer totally.
As you see in the code bellow I am calling a
JOptionPane.showMessageDialog() after the JButton.setBackground and right before i stall the code using
do {
}while(time+i*100>System.currentTimeMillis());
Ignore the robot.keypress for the time. Lets get to the point. If i didn't use the JOptionPane before the code stalling , the ui would seem frozen and the button wouldn't repaint. But calling the JOptionPane.ShowMessageDialog() gives "time" to the button to repaint. Then the code is stalled normally and I achieve the sequential color repaint. I used the robot.keypress to close the Pane and achieve the effect desired.
My Questions: First, what happens when the JOptionPane is created that allows the button to repaint ? And secondly why the robot works only before the JOptionPane is called? I tried calling after the Pane was called like one would assume it should happen , but it wouldn't work in that case.
Extra: This didn't work in a mac it seems to only work for windows. Not quite sure.
public static void paintbutton(int bnr,boolean corr) {
long time;
try {
Robot robot = new Robot();
for (int i=5;i>1;i--){
b[bnr-1].setBackground(null);
// Simulate a key press
robot.keyPress(KeyEvent.VK_SPACE);
robot.keyRelease(KeyEvent.VK_SPACE);
JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,"hi");
time = System.currentTimeMillis();
do {
}while(time+i*100>System.currentTimeMillis());
b[bnr-1].setBackground(i==1?(corr?Color.green:Color.red):Color.yellow);
// Simulate a key press
robot.keyPress(KeyEvent.VK_SPACE);
robot.keyRelease(KeyEvent.VK_SPACE);
JOptionPane.showMessageDialog(null,"hi");
time = System.currentTimeMillis();
do {
}while(time+i*100>System.currentTimeMillis());
}
} catch (AWTException e) {
System.err.println("error");
}
}
To avoid confusion as to the nature of this question!
The code in the state below doesn't work and I know it shouldn't. I am curious on how adding JOptionPane solves that.
public static void paintbutton(int bnr,boolean corr) {
long time;
for (int i=5;i>1;i--){
b[bnr-1].setBackground(null);
time = System.currentTimeMillis();
do {
}while(time+i*100>System.currentTimeMillis());
b[bnr-1].setBackground(i==1?(corr?Color.green:Color.red):Color.yellow);
time = System.currentTimeMillis();
do {
}while(time+i*100>System.currentTimeMillis());
}
}

JavaFX pausing during for loop WITHOUT using Thread.Sleep()

I'm coding this in JavaFX using a FXMLController and the scene builder.
I'm currently creating an Instagram "liker" mostly just for practice as I'm a Computer Science major, and I just like coding.
My issue is, I have a for loop that "likes" 20 photos for each hashtag, I obviously need a delay or I'd get banned rather quickly. The user can choose the delay, then I randomize this delay so it's not too robotic.
The only way I've been able to use this delay is through the thread.sleep method, but since I'm coding on the FXMLController, it freezes the whole UI, and somehow stops other textareas from being updated. This is obviously not ideal.
I've looked everywhere trying to find an alternative to this, but I can't find anything that works in my program.
I'll give the whole method:
private void start() {
sleepWhen();
tagNumber++;
int delays = Integer.valueOf(delay.getText());
delays = delays * 1000;
if (loaded) {
runTime.clear();
runTime.appendText("Liking...");
for (int i = 0; i < 20; i++) {
webEngine.executeScript("document.getElementsByClassName('btn btn-default btn-xs likeButton')[" + i + "].click()");
try {
double random = Math.random() * 1000;
random = random + delays;
delays = (int) random;
System.out.println(delays);
likes++;
likesNumber.clear();
likesNumber.appendText(String.valueOf(likes));
System.out.println(String.valueOf(likes));
Thread.sleep(delays);
delays = Integer.valueOf(delay.getText());
delays = delays * 1000;
} catch (InterruptedException ex) {
//do nothing
}
System.out.println("tag number" + tagNumber + "numbertags" + numberTags);
if (!sleep) {
if (tagNumber < numberTags) {
System.out.println("Loading tag:" + tagNumber);
loadTag(tagNumber);
}
}
}
}
}
This likes 20 photos, then loads another hashtag, and repeats.
Any help with this would be great, thanks.

The freeze is because you are trying to do everything on the same thread, when you are using Thread.sleep(delays), you are actually putting your UI thread to sleep and hence the lag !
Try using different thread for your work, you can either use a worker thread, if whatever you are doing will not affect the UI
or you can use Platform.runLater(), if you want the changes to shown on the UI !
For more details :
concurrency in javafx !
Platform.runLater and Task in JavaFX

Pressing a JButton by hand yields different results to doClick()?

I have a problem when a JButton on my interface, when pressed the button triggers this event listener:
if (event.getSource() == goButton)
{
MainLauncher.doProgram(assetsField.getText(), FileFinder.completePath(String.format("%s\\%s", modDirectoryPath, modList.getSelectedValue())), databaseField.getText());
}
which runs the following code:
public static void doProgram(final String baseGamePath, final String modPath, final String databasePath)
{
new Thread()
{
public void run()
{
System.out.println("Running: " + modPath + "\n");
reader = new MetaDataReader(databasePath);
reader.formConnection();
long start = System.currentTimeMillis();
long temp;
File cache = new File("RegisterCache.SC");
if (!cache.exists())
{
temp = System.currentTimeMillis();
start += System.currentTimeMillis() - temp;
System.out.println("Calculating number of files");
FileFinder baseGame = new FileFinder();
baseGame.calculateNumFiles(baseGamePath);
System.out.println(String.format("Loading %s base game files", baseGame.getNumFiles()));
gui.doProgressBar();
baseGame.findFiles(baseGamePath, true);
gui.killProgressBar();
System.out.println();
//load the base game assets, we want to move this to metadata later
System.out.println("Checking for base game reference errors");
new ReferenceDetector(Table.getRegister()).findReferences(true);
Table.serializeTable(cache); //write the database to cache, we can use it next time
}
else
{
System.out.println("Loading cache");
Table.unserializeTable(cache);
}
gui.doCommands(); //calls reset()!!! be careful with the temporary excludes!
System.out.println("Eliminating base game requires errors");
RequiresWhere.executeRequires(true);
temp = System.currentTimeMillis();
start += System.currentTimeMillis() - temp;
System.out.println("Calculating number of files");
FileFinder mod = new FileFinder();
mod.calculateNumFiles(modPath);
System.out.println(String.format("Loading %s mod files", mod.getNumFiles()));
gui.doProgressBar();
mod.findFiles(modPath, false);
gui.killProgressBar();
System.out.println();
System.out.println("Finding reference errors");
new ReferenceDetector(Table.getRegister()).findReferences(false);
System.out.println("Finding requires errors");
RequiresWhere.executeRequires(false);
System.out.println("Checks complete");
reader.killConnection();
System.out.println(String.format("Execution Time: %dms", System.currentTimeMillis() - start));
Table.reset();
}
}.run();
}
The odd thing is this:
When testing I didn't have my button added to the interface, and so on main() I was calling goButton.doClick(); which triggered the doProgram(), and gives me the results I expected which is this:
a couple of things are printed out (to a JTextArea on the interface that receives from System.out.println()), a progress bar pops up above the console, and goes from 0% to 100% in around 10 seconds, disappears, a few more things are printed etc etc.
However when I added the button to the interface I clicked it and the behavior was not the same at all:
Nothing is printed. The progress Bar comes up, and stays at 0% for 10 seconds, then disappears, a few seconds later the doProgram finishes executing and all the information that should have been printed during runtime is suddenly printed all at once.
Can anybody tell me what is causing this strange behavior and how it can be fixed?
I would post a SSCCE, but it is a little difficult to do for this program as there are so many tasks and subprocesses. Note that, the progress bar I use it run on the GUI thread, the main code is done in it's own thread (as you can see)
EDIT: I added setEnabled(false); and true inside the listener surrounding the call to doProgram, and when the button is programatically pressed, the button is greyed out and this renabled as I expect, however if I click the button by hand it does not disable, and I can press it again

The code looks a bit confusing.
However, first of all: You are calling the run() method of the new Thread that you are creating there. This will cause the code from the run() method to be executed by the thread that calls doProgram, and not by the new Thread that you are creating there. In order to execute the code really in this new Thread, you have to call start() instead of run().
This explains probably most of the differences that you described. However, keep in mind that modifications to Swing components always have to be done on the Event Dispatch Thread. So whatever you are doing, for example, with gui.doCommands(), make sure that you don't violate this Single Thread Rule.

Why doesn't the ProgressMonitor display on second call?

I have written a program which uses the progressbar class from the default java runtime. It works perfectly except for the fact that it only works once. I use it to display the loading of various images into my GUI and it works fine on startup. However, once I call it again it just displays a JFrame with no content. I can drag the JFrame around and everything, it's just that it won't display anything. This is peculiar considering it works when it runs the first time, but not there after. Here is my code:
public void prefetch (){
try{
pageURLs = mangaEngine.getPageList();
monitor = new ProgressMonitor(parent, "Loading Chapter..,", null, 0, mangaEngine.getPageList().length);
pages = new StretchIconHQ[pageURLs.length];
//Resets page counter to first page by fetching pages in reverse order
monitor.setMaximum(pageURLs.length-1);
for(int i = pageURLs.length-1; i>=0; i--){
pages[i] = mangaEngine.loadImg(pageURLs[i]);
monitor.setProgress(pageURLs.length-1-i);
monitor.setNote("Loading Image:" + (pageURLs.length-1-i) + " of " + (pageURLs.length-1));
}
}
catch(Exception ex){
ex.printStackTrace();
}
}
Any ideas on how to fix it?

You need to run the long-running code in a background thread such as that created by a SwingWorker.
In fact, the Progress Monitor Tutorial describes how to do this exactly:
Create a SwingWorker
Add a PropertyChangeListener to it
Listen to the "progress" property
Update your monitor's progress with that of the SwingWorker's.

Can't play gif when using freeTTS Voices - Java

I am using freeTTS to speak out some text, in the background i want a animated gif to keep playing
When i try this: as soon as the voice starts speaking, the image in background gets hanged even if i keep it in some other JFrame... and after the speech is completed it starts moving. I want it to run properly without pauses.
I am placing a animated gif in a label by importing it to my application and changing the icon to that image in label' properties.
Edit
Here is my code:
private void RandomjBActionPerformed(java.awt.event.ActionEvent evt) {
Voice voice;
voice = voiceManager.getVoice(VOICENAME);
voice.allocate();
voice.speak("Daksh");
}
I am actually using a lot of setVisible, setText, declaration of integers, calculating on them but i have removed them to simplify the code for you to understand. Still it gives the same problem if executed.
The button 'RandomjB' is clicked from another button by the following code:
final Timer timer = new Timer(zad, new ActionListener() {
int tick = 0;
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
System.out.println("Success" + ++tick);
RandomjB.doClick();
final int col = Integer.parseInt(t3.getText());;
if (tick >= col) {
((Timer) e.getSource()).stop();
for(int g=0; g<col; g++){
jButton2.setVisible(true); // Check Button -> Visible
}
}
}
});
timer.setInitialDelay(0);
System.out.format("About to schedule task.%n");
timer.start();
System.out.format("Task scheduled.%n");

It is hard to tell without the code, I however assume that you loop the speech synthesis within the one and only Swing-Thread and therefore block all kind of window updates as long as the speech loop is in progress.
As stated by Shaun Wild: you need to use a second Thread for the speech loop.

You may want to do some research on Threads and Concurrency
These allow two things to operate simultaneously, this is just my assumption.
Assuming that you instantiate some kind of class for the FreeTTS you may want to do something like this
FreeTTSClass tts;
new Thread(new Runnable(){
public void run(){
tts = new FreeTTSClass();
}
}).start();