Develop Reference

Java Virtual Keyboard for Mac

I'm working on an on-screen keyboard for Windows and macOS and I've made a little test app. It has a single button and types the letter “M” to the active application. It works for Windows 10, but not Mac (I'm running macOS 10.12). In macOS, as soon as I press the button, whichever app I'm trying to send the "M" to loses focus (the cursor for text entry disappears), even though my single button "keyboard" has setFocusable(false) all over the place. I tried my own MouseListener on the button too.
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
public class main {
private static Robot robot;
private static Rectangle rectangle;
public static void main(String[] args){
try {
robot = new Robot();
} catch (AWTException e) {
e.printStackTrace();
}
Button button = new Button("M");
button.setFocusable(false);
JFrame frame = new JFrame("Test");
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
frame.setSize(100, 100);
frame.add(button);
frame.setAlwaysOnTop(true);
//set everything I can think of to unfocusable!!!
frame.setFocusable(false);
frame.setAutoRequestFocus(false);
frame.setFocusableWindowState(false);
frame.getRootPane().setFocusable(false);
frame.setVisible(true);
button.addActionListener(new ActionListener() {
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
sendKeystroke();
}
});
//Instead of adding a listener to the button, I've also tried my own MouseListener.
/* button.addMouseListener(new MouseTrap());
rectangle = button.getBounds();*/
}
private static void sendKeystroke(){
robot.keyPress(KeyEvent.VK_M);
robot.keyRelease(KeyEvent.VK_M);
}
private static class MouseTrap extends MouseAdapter{
#Override
public void mouseClicked(MouseEvent e) {
if (rectangle.contains(e.getPoint())){
sendKeystroke();
}
}
}
}
It seems like macOS does let some apps have focus without taking the cursor from another. e.g. VMware or spotlight search from the system tray.
Cursor for VMware and IntelliJ at the same time
I've seen other answer which are non-Java:
Virtual Keyboard Cocoa & Objective C
But do I really have to go all native when Java works on Windows? Apart from the learning curve (not done anything native on a Mac), I want to keep Win and Mac versions versions as close as possible.
Anyone know how I could get this working using straight Java?
(Note: As was the case with the questioner for the above link, I can't just use a keyboardview, as I want send modified/additional data from the keyboard e.g. text predictions. I believe that would require additional native code again.)

I have tried to find the way very much. But it seems that it is not possible by pure Java without any native code.

Is there any default java class for a Popup JDialog?

I have been using this code to implement a Popup JDialog of sorts, like what you see when your anti-virus is scanning your system or updates itself:
import java.awt.*;
import javax.swing.JDialog;
import javax.swing.JLabel;
public class PopupDialog extends JDialog {
public PopupDialog() throws HeadlessException {
createUI();
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
EventQueue.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
#Override
public void run() {
PopupDialog popupDialog = new PopupDialog();
popupDialog.setVisible(true);
}
});
}
private void createUI() {
setTitle("Popup Dialog");
setDefaultCloseOperation(JDialog.DISPOSE_ON_CLOSE);
addComponentsToFrame();
//This call will give screens viable area, which takes into account the taskbar, which could be at the bottom, top,left or right of the screen.
Rectangle maxBounds = GraphicsEnvironment.getLocalGraphicsEnvironment().getMaximumWindowBounds();
//get screen size
int sWidth = maxBounds.width, sHeight = maxBounds.height;
setSize(275, 225);//set frame size
Dimension appDim = getSize();
//get app size
int aWidth = appDim.width, aHeight = appDim.height;
//set location like a tooltip would be except its a custom dialog like an AV
setLocation(sWidth - aWidth, (sHeight - aHeight));
}
private void addComponentsToFrame() {
JLabel label = new JLabel("Popup Dialog");
getContentPane().add(label, BorderLayout.CENTER);
}
}
But my question is: is there any class or package in java that will do this for me? and if not how would I go about allowing the JDialog to slide up from the taskbar (or offscreen)? or somehow become visible in a slow manner like a ToolTip Popup would from the system tray. Thanks.
EDIT The reason i want to use a JDialog or Frame is because i want to be able to fully skin the Popup window, using setUndecorated(true); and adding custom exit icons, backgrounds etc

You mean like the examples here: http://docs.oracle.com/javase/tutorial/uiswing/misc/systemtray.html ?

First, you can make your frame be always on top, this will ensure it is always visible. Next, you could position the frame off the bottom of the screen and slide it up programmatically. This should be fairly smooth even on an older XP machine. There is no standard Java API to do this but you can do it yourself pretty easily. Another option instead of sliding is to make the window fully transparent and fade it in. This API was added in recent (last 2 years) Java 6 updates, so it should be available everywhere.

Java applet game does not work on Macs, even though it does work on PCs

I made a game that is based in a jpanel. When I add the jpanel to a jframe, it works fine on both pc's and macs.
here is the class where I add the jpanel to the jframe:
import javax.swing.JFrame;
public class Start{
public static void main(String[] args){
JFrame f = new JFrame("Rocks");
f.setSize(600,500);
f.setResizable(false);
f.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
Board b = new Board();
f.add(b);
f.setVisible(true);
}
}
However, when I add this jpanel to a japplet, it still works perfectly on pc's, but not on macs. In the eclipse applet tester, the first screen paints, but it doesn't accept keyboard input to start the game. In any browser/html page though, the game doesn't seem to load at all, and when I open the java console of chrome I see no errors.
here is the class where I add the jpanel to the japplet
import javax.swing.JApplet;
public class rockAppletStart extends JApplet{
public void init(){
Board b;
b = new Board();
add(b);
b.focus();
}
public void start(){}
public void stop(){}
public void destroy(){}
}
I would appreciate any help that could be offered, and I'm willing to provide more information if necessary. I could even provide the other classes of the game, but there very long and messy, and I'd rather not unless necessary.
The applet version of the game can be found here at gamejolt.com, if you feel like testing it out. If you have a pc, it should work fine, but with a mac it won't.
** edit **
here you can download the .jar file of all the classes and resources. Feel free to use the files to test out your solution yourself if you want... Otherwise, Ill have access to a mac on Tuesday and I will test all solutions then.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/18832480/Rocks_Source_file.jar

This is just a SWAG, but since Swing threading issues can often cause pernicious, unpredictable and hard to detect errors, what if you create your applet in a thread-safe manner? i.e.,
public void init() {
try {
javax.swing.SwingUtilities.invokeAndWait(new Runnable() {
public void run() {
createGUI();
}
});
} catch (Exception e) {
System.err.println("createGUI didn't successfully complete");
}
}
private void createGUI() {
Board b;
b = new Board();
getContentPane().add(b);
b.focus()
}

The JApplet is stealing the focus from the Board. To prevent it, add the following to the end of your init() method:
setFocusable(false);

Desktop application - how do I dynamically create and destroy forms

I'm creating a small crypto app for the desktop using java.
I'm using JFrames (import javax.swing.JFrame) with Oracle
JDeveloper 11g under Linux.
I want to have a "welcome" form/frame where users can choose
their encryption method, and then on choosing the method,
I want to dynamically create the appropriate form for the
chosen encryption method and also destroy/free/dispose() of
the welcome form. When the user has finished their encrypting,
they should close the frame/form (either by clicking on the
x at the top right - or using the Exit button or by any
method) and the welcome frame should be dynamically recreated
and appear.
I've tried various things - btnEncode_actionPerformed(ActionEvent e)
then this.dispose() - and I've fiddled with this_windowClosed(WindowEvent e)
and dispose(), but nothing seems to work.
Even a workaround using setVisibl(true/false) would be acceptable at
this stage - this has been wrecking my head all day. It's very
easy to do in Delphi!
TIA and rgs,
Paul...

something like this usually does the trick: (Note I haven't tested this)
public class WelcomeMsg extends JFrame
.
.
.
public void btnContinue_actionPerformed(ActionEvent e)
{
this.dispose();
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable(){ new JFrameAppropriateWindow(args) });
}
where btnContinue is the Continue button on your welcome form and JFrameAppropriateWindow is the next frame you would like to show depending on the user's choice. Args are any arguments you need to pass.
When you are ready, you can simply dispose the current frame and relaunch an instance of WelcomeMsg

I put together this simple example for creating and displaying a panel depending on a user choice.
public class Window extends JFrame {
public Window() {
this.setLayout(new BorderLayout());
JComboBox encryptionCombobox = new JComboBox();
encryptionCombobox.addItem("foo");
encryptionCombobox.addItem("bar");
//...
encryptionCombobox.addActionListener(new ActionListener() {
#Override
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) {
// find choices and the correct panel
JPanel formPanel = new JPanel();
formPanel.setOpaque(true);
formPanel.setBackground(Color.RED);
//...
Window.this.add(formPanel, BorderLayout.CENTER);
Window.this.validate();
Window.this.repaint();
}
});
add(encryptionCombobox, BorderLayout.NORTH);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
new Window().setVisible(true);
}
}
When I come to think about it, you should probably use a CardLayout instead, which allows you to switch between different panels (cards).

Making a Java panel fullscreen

How would you make a JComponent (panel, frame, window, etc.) fullscreen, so that it also overlaps everything on the screen including the windows start bar?
I don't want to change the resolution or anything with the graphics device like bitdepth etc, I just want to overlap everything else.

Check out this tutorial describing Java's Full-Screen mode API.
Example code (taken from the tutorial). Note that the code operates on a Window so you would need to embed your JPanel with a Window (e.g. JFrame) in order to do this.
GraphicsDevice myDevice;
Window myWindow;
try {
myDevice.setFullScreenWindow(myWindow);
...
} finally {
myDevice.setFullScreenWindow(null);
}

You can try some of the codes in this page, allowing a container to fill the screen (so it is not a solution for an individual component, but for a set of components within a container like a JFrame)
public class MainWindow extends JFrame
{
public MainWindow()
{
super("Fullscreen");
getContentPane().setPreferredSize( Toolkit.getDefaultToolkit().getScreenSize());
pack();
setResizable(false);
show();
SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
public void run()
{
Point p = new Point(0, 0);
SwingUtilities.convertPointToScreen(p, getContentPane());
Point l = getLocation();
l.x -= p.x;
l.y -= p.y;
setLocation(l);
}
});
}
...
}

You need to use the following API: http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/extra/fullscreen/index.html
Going full screen isn't as simple as making a large panel, you need to look into the underlying OS graphics. But your JPanel code should translate just fine.

I needed to search a lot, to do the same. Here is completely a working version of it by steps, so that i can find it later also, and use it.
Step 1: create a file called fullscreen.java
Step 2: copy this code and paste it as it is:
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
public class fullscreen extends Window
{
private Button button;
public fullscreen()
{
super(new Frame());
button = new Button("Close");
button.addActionListener(new ActionListener()
{
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e)
{
System.exit(0);
}
});
setLayout(new FlowLayout());
add(button);
Dimension screenSize = Toolkit.getDefaultToolkit().getScreenSize();
setBounds(0,0,screenSize.width, screenSize.height);
}
public static void main(String[] args)
{
// This will take over your whole screen tested and works in my:
// Fedora 12/13/14
// CentOS 5.0
// if this works for you, in other platforms, please leave a comments which OS it worked.
// happy coding!
new fullscreen().setVisible(true);
}
}
Step 3: compile the code and run
Done.

If I were you I would try to make Java not draw the border of the Jframe, then make it take all the screen.
import java.awt.GraphicsEnvironment;
import java.awt.Rectangle;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
public class FenNoBorder extends JFrame {
public FenNoBorder () {
setUndecorated(true);
setVisible(true);
GraphicsEnvironment graphicsEnvironment=GraphicsEnvironment.getLocalGraphicsEnvironment();
Rectangle maximumWindowBounds=graphicsEnvironment.getMaximumWindowBounds();
setBounds(maximumWindowBounds);
}
}