© 2014 Marty Hall

AWT Components:
Simple User Interfaces
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3 Developed and taught by well-known author and developer. At public venues or onsite at your location.

© 2014 Marty Hall

For live Java-related training,

email [email protected]
Marty is also available for consulting and development support
Taught by lead author of Core Servlets & JSP, co-author of
Core JSF (4th Ed), & this tutorial. Available at public venues, or
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• Courses developed and taught by Marty Hall
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for details
 Topics in This Section
• Available GUI libraries in Java
• Basic AWT windows
– Canvas, Panel, Frame
• Closing frames
• Processing events in GUI controls
• Basic AWT user interface controls
– Button, checkbox, radio button, list box

© 2014 Marty Hall

GUI Libraries
in Java SE

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6 Developed and taught by well-known author and developer. At public venues or onsite at your location.
 GUI Libraries in Java
Part of Java SE Extensions
• AWT (Abstract Window Toolkit) • SWT (Standard Widget Toolkit)
– The original GUI library in Java – GUI from the Eclipse foundation.
1.02. Native Look and Feel (LAF). Native LAF ala AWT.
• Covered in this lecture • See http://www.eclipse.org/swt/
– Purposes – Purposes
• Easy building of simple-looking • Higher-performance professional
interfaces looking GUIs
– Often for internal purposes • Native LAF
only. Not seen by end users. • Interaction with the Eclipse Rich
• First step toward learning Client Platform
Swing
• Swing • Java FX
– GUI library added to Java starting – GUI library and tools now
in Java 1.1 standardized separately
• Covered in later lectures • See http://javafx.com/
– Purposes • Part of Java SE starting in Java 8
• Professional looking GUIs that – Purposes
follow standard • XML-based layout
• GUIs with the same look and • Mobile platforms
feel on multiple platforms
• Rich media: audio, video, etc.
7

© 2014 Marty Hall

Background

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8 Developed and taught by well-known author and developer. At public venues or onsite at your location.
 Windows and Layout
Management
• Containers
– Most windows are a Container that can hold other
windows or GUI components. Canvas is the major
exception.
• Layout Managers
– Containers have a LayoutManager that automatically
sizes and positions components that are in the window
– You can change the behavior of the layout manager or
disable it completely. Details in next lecture.
• Events
– Windows and components can receive mouse and
keyboard events, just as in previous lecture.
9

Windows and Layout

Management (Continued)
• Drawing in Windows
– To draw into a window, make a subclass with its own
paint method
– Having one window draw into another window is not
usually recommended
• Popup Windows
– Some windows (Frame and Dialog) have their own
title bar and border and can be placed at arbitrary
locations on the screen
– Other windows (Canvas an Panel) are embedded into
existing windows only

10
 © 2014 Marty Hall

Foundational AWT
Window Types

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11 Developed and taught by well-known author and developer. At public venues or onsite at your location.

Summary
• Canvas
– Purpose:
• Reusable picture or drawing area. Basis for custom component.
– Code
• Allocate Canvas, give it a size, add it to existing window.
• Panel
– Purpose
• To group other components into rectangular regions.
– Code
• Allocate Panel, put other components in it, add to window.
• Frame
– Purpose
• Core popup window. Main window for your application.
– Code
• Allocate Frame, give it a size, add stuff to it, pop it up.
12
 Canvas
• Major purposes
– A drawing area
– A custom component that does not need to contain any
other component (e.g., an image button)
• Default layout manager: none
– Canvas is not a Container, so cannot enclose components
• Creating and using
– Allocate it Since Canvas is often the starting point for a component that has
a custom paint method or event handlers, you often do
• Canvas c = new Canvas(); MySpecializedCanvas c = new MySpecializedCanvas(…).

– Give it a size
• c.setSize(width, height);
– Drop it in existing window
If this code is in the main window, then “someWindow” is “this” and can be omitted.
13
• someWindow.add(c); I.e, the init method of an applet would add a Canvas to itself just with “add(c);”.

Canvas Example
import java.awt.*;

/** A Circle component built using a Canvas. */

public class Circle extends Canvas {

private int width, height;

public Circle(Color foreground, int radius) {

setForeground(foreground);
width = 2*radius;
height = 2*radius;
setSize(width, height);
}

public void paint(Graphics g) {

g.fillOval(0, 0, width, height);
}

public void setCenter(int x, int y) {

setLocation(x - width/2, y - height/2);
}
14 }
 Canvas Example (Continued)
import java.awt.*;
import java.applet.Applet;

public class CircleTest extends Applet {

public void init() {
setBackground(Color.LIGHT_GRAY);
add(new Circle(Color.WHITE, 30));
add(new Circle(Color.GRAY, 40));
add(new Circle(Color.BLACK, 50));
}
}

15

Canvases are Rectangular and

Opaque: Example
public class CircleTest2 extends Applet {
public void init() {
setBackground(Color.LIGHT_GRAY);
setLayout(null); // Turn off layout manager.
Circle circle;
int radius = getSize().width/6;
int deltaX = round(2.0 * (double)radius / Math.sqrt(2.0));
for (int x=radius; x<6*radius; x=x+deltaX) {
circle = new Circle(Color.BLACK, radius);
add(circle);
circle.setCenter(x, x);
}
}

private int round(double num) {

return((int)Math.round(num));
}
}

16
 Lightweight Components
• Idea
– Regular AWT windows are native windows behind the
scenes. So, they are rectangular and opaque.
– You can make “lightweight components” – components
that are really pictures, not windows, behind the scenes.
• These don’t have the rectangular/opaque restrictions, but
building them is usually more trouble than it is worth in the
AWT library. The Swing library makes it simple with a
“setOpaque” method.
• Code
– If you really want to do it yourself in AWT, you have to
tell Java how to calculate the minimum and preferred
sizes (see later section on layout managers).
• Even so, it can have tricky interactions if the enclosing
window has a custom paint method. Use Swing instead!
17

Lightweight Components:
Example
public class BetterCircle extends Component {
private Dimension preferredDimension;
private int width, height;

public BetterCircle(Color foreground, int radius) {

setForeground(foreground);
width = 2*radius; height = 2*radius;
preferredDimension = new Dimension(width, height);
setSize(preferredDimension);
}

public void paint(Graphics g) {

g.setColor(getForeground());
g.fillOval(0, 0, width, height);
}

public Dimension getPreferredSize() {

return(preferredDimension);
}
public Dimension getMinimumSize() {
return(preferredDimension);
}
18
...
}
 Component Class
• Idea
– Ancestor of all graphical components in Java (even
Swing). So, methods here are shared by all windows and
controls.
• Useful methods
– getBackground/setBackground
– getForeground/setForeground
• Change/lookup the default foreground color
• Color is inherited by the Graphics object of the component
– getFont/setFont
• Returns/sets the current font
• Inherited by the Graphics object of the component
– paint
• Called whenever the user call repaint or when the
component is obscured and reexposed
19

Component Class (Continued)

• Useful methods
– setVisible
• Exposes (true) or hides (false) the component
• Especially useful for frames and dialogs
– setSize/setBounds/setLocation
– getSize/getBounds/getLocation
• Physical aspects (size and position) of the component
– list
• Prints out info on this component and any components it
contains; useful for debugging
– invalidate/validate
• Tell layout manager to redo the layout
– getParent
20 • Returns enclosing window (or null if there is none)
 Panel
• Major purposes
– To group/organize components
– A custom component that requires embedded components
• Default layout manager: FlowLayout
– Shrinks components to their preferred (minimum) size
– Places them left to right in centered rows
• Creating and using
– Allocate it
• Panel p = new Panel();
Note the lack of an explicit setSize. The size of a Panel is
– Put stuff into it usually determined by a combination of what the Panel
contains and the layout manager of the window that
contains the Panel.
• p.add(someButton);
• p.add(someOtherWidget);
– Drop the Panel in an existing window
21
• someWindow.add(p);

No Panels: Example
import java.applet.Applet;
import java.awt.*;

public class ButtonTest1 extends Applet {

public void init() {
String[] labelPrefixes = { "Start", "Stop", "Pause",
"Resume" };
for (int i=0; i<4; i++) {
add(new Button(labelPrefixes[i] + " Thread1"));
}
for (int i=0; i<4; i++) {
add(new Button(labelPrefixes[i] + " Thread2"));
}
}
}

22
 No Panels: Result

23

Panels: Example
import java.applet.Applet;
import java.awt.*;

public class ButtonTest2 extends Applet {

public void init() {
String[] labelPrefixes = { "Start", "Stop", "Pause",
"Resume" };
Panel p1 = new Panel();
for (int i=0; i<4; i++) {
p1.add(new Button(labelPrefixes[i] + " Thread1"));
}
Panel p2 = new Panel();
for (int i=0; i<4; i++) {
p2.add(new Button(labelPrefixes[i] + " Thread2"));
}
add(p1);
add(p2);
}
}
24
 Panels: Result

25

Container Class
• Idea
– Ancestor of all window types except Canvas. So, these methods are
common among almost all windows.
• Useful Container methods
– add
• Add a component to the container (in the last position in the
component array)
• If using BorderLayout, you can also specify in which region to
place the component
– remove
• Remove the component from the window (container)
– getComponents
• Returns an array of components in the window
• Used by layout managers
– setLayout
26 • Changes the layout manager associated with the window
 Frame Class
• Major Purpose
– A stand-alone window with its own title and menu bar,
border, cursor, and icon image
• Can contain other GUI components
• Default layout manager: BorderLayout
– BorderLayout
• Divides the screen into 5 regions: North, South, East,
West, and Center
– To switch to the applet’s layout manager use
• setLayout(new FlowLayout());
• Creating and using – two approaches:
– A fixed-size Frame
– A Frame that stretches to fit what it contains
27

Creating a Fixed-Size Frame

• Approach
Frame frame = new Frame(titleString);
frame.add(somePanel, BorderLayout.CENTER);
frame.add(otherPanel, BorderLayout.NORTH);
...
frame.setSize(width, height);
frame.setVisible(true);

• Note: be sure you pop up the frame last

– Odd behavior results if you add components to a window
that is already visible (unless you call doLayout on the
frame)

28
 Creating a Frame that Stretches
to Fit What it Contains
• Approach
Frame frame = new Frame(titleString);
frame.setLocation(left, top);
frame.add(somePanel, BorderLayout.CENTER);
...
frame.pack();
frame.setVisible(true);

• Note
– Again, be sure to pop up the frame after adding the
components

29

Frame Example 1
• Creating the Frame object in main
public class FrameExample1 {
public static void main(String[] args) {
Frame f = new Frame("Frame Example 1");
f.setSize(400, 300);
f.setVisible(true);
}
}

30
 Frame Example 2
• Using a Subclass of Frame

public class FrameExample2 extends Frame {

public FrameExample2() {
super("Frame Example 2");
setSize(400, 300);
setVisible(true);
}

public static void main(String[] args) {

new FrameExample2();
}
} The “main” method that instantiates the Frame need not reside in
FrameExample2. The idea is that you make a reusable Frame
class, and then that class can be popped up various different
ways (from main, when the user clicks a button, when certain
events occur in your app, etc.)
31

A Closeable Frame
• CloseableFrame.java
public class CloseableFrame extends Frame {
public CloseableFrame(String title) {
super(title);
addWindowListener(new ExitListener());
}
}
• ExitListener.java
public class ExitListener extends WindowAdapter {
public void windowClosing(WindowEvent event) {
System.exit(0);
}
}
Download these two classes from the source code in the tutorial,
then use CloseableFrame wherever you would have used Frame.

32
 Frame Example 3
• Using a Subclass of CloseableFrame
public class FrameExample3 extends CloseableFrame {
public FrameExample3() {
super("Frame Example 3");
setSize(400, 300);
setVisible(true);
}

public static void main(String[] args) {

new FrameExample3();
}
}
Same as previous example, but now the Frame
closes when you click on the x.

33

© 2014 Marty Hall

AWT GUI Controls and

Event Processing

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 AWT GUI Controls
• Characteristics (vs. windows)
– Automatically drawn – you don’t override paint
– Positioned by layout manager
– Use native window-system controls (widgets)
• Controls adopt look and feel of underlying window system
– Higher level events typically used
• For example, for buttons you don’t monitor mouse clicks,
since most OS’s also let you trigger a button by hitting
RETURN when the button has the keyboard focus

35

GUI Event Processing

Strategies
• Decentralized event processing
– Component (e.g., Button) has its own event handler
• Harder to call methods in the main app, so works best
when operations are relatively independent
• Centralized event processing
– Have main app implement listener. Send all events there.
• Easier for handler to call methods from the main app
• But, if you have multiple buttons, you will need if/then/else
in the event-handler method
• Semi-centralized event processing
– Use inner class for event handling
• Better than interface if you have many different buttons
36
 Decentralized Event Processing:
Example
import java.awt.*;

public class ActionExample1 extends CloseableFrame {

public ActionExample1() {
super("Handling Events in Component");
setLayout(new FlowLayout());
setFont(new Font("Serif", Font.BOLD, 18));
add(new SetSizeButton(300, 200));
add(new SetSizeButton(400, 300));
add(new SetSizeButton(500, 400));
setSize(400, 300);
setVisible(true);
}

public static void main(String[] args) {

new ActionExample1();
}
} Very closely analogous to the first approach from the event-
37 handling lecture (separate classes for event handlers).

Decentralized Event Processing:

Example (Continued)
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;

public class SetSizeButton extends Button

implements ActionListener {
private int width, height;

public SetSizeButton(int width, int height) {

super("Resize to " + width + "x" + height);
this.width = width;
this.height = height;
addActionListener(this);
}

public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent event) {

Container parent = getParent();
parent.setSize(width, height);
parent.invalidate();
parent.validate();
38
}
 Decentralized Event Processing:
Result

39

Centralized Event Processing:

Example
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;

public class ActionExample2 extends CloseableFrame

implements ActionListener {
private Button button1, button2, button3;

public ActionExample2() {
super("Handling Events in Other Object");
setLayout(new FlowLayout());
setFont(new Font("Serif", Font.BOLD, 18));
button1 = new Button("Resize to 300x200");
button1.addActionListener(this);
add(button1);
// Add button2 and button3 in the same way…
...
setSize(400, 300);
setVisible(true);
}
40
 Centralized Event Processing:
Example (Continued)
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent event) {
if (event.getSource() == button1) {
updateLayout(300, 200);
} else if (event.getSource() == button2) {
updateLayout(400, 300);
} else if (event.getSource() == button3) {
updateLayout(500, 400);
}
}

private void updateLayout(int width, int height) {

setSize(width, height);
invalidate();
validate();
}

public static void main(String[] args) {

new ActionExample2();
}
Very closely analogous to the second approach from the
41
} event-handling lecture (main class implements interface).

Semi-Centralized Event
Processing: Example
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;

public class ActionExample3 extends CloseableFrame {

private Button button1, button2, button3;

public ActionExample3() {
super("Handling Events in Other Object");
setLayout(new FlowLayout());
setFont(new Font("Serif", Font.BOLD, 18));
button1 = new Button("Resize to 300x200");
button1.addActionListener(new ResizeHandler(300, 200));
add(button1);
// Add button2 and button3 in the same way…
...
setSize(400, 300);
setVisible(true);
}
42
 Semi-Centralized Event
Processing: Example (Cont)
private void updateLayout(int width, int height) {
setSize(width, height);
invalidate();
validate();
}
private class ResizeHandler implements ActionListener {
private int width, height;
public ResizeHandler(int width, int height) {
this.width= width;
this.height = height;
}
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent event) {
updateLayout(width, height);
}
}

public static void main(String[] args) {

new ActionExample3();
}
} Very closely analogous to the third approach from the event-
43 handling lecture (inner classes for event handlers).

© 2014 Marty Hall

Basic AWT GUI

Controls

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44 Developed and taught by well-known author and developer. At public venues or onsite at your location.
 Buttons
• Constructors
– Button()
Button(String buttonLabel)
• The button size (preferred size) is based on the height and
width of the label in the current font, plus some extra
space determined by the OS
• Useful Methods
– getLabel/setLabel
• Retrieves or sets the current label
• If the button is already displayed, setting the label does not
automatically reorganize its Container
– The containing window should be invalidated and validated to force
a fresh layout
someButton.setLabel("A New Label");
someButton.getParent().invalidate();
someButton.getParent().validate();

45

Buttons (Continued)
• Event processing methods
– addActionListener/removeActionListener
• Add/remove an ActionListener that processes
ActionEvents in actionPerformed
– processActionEvent
• Low-level event handling
• General methods inherited from component
– getForeground/setForeground
– getBackground/setBackground
– getFont/setFont

46
 Button: Example
public class Buttons extends Applet {
private Button button1, button2, button3;
public void init() {
button1 = new Button("Button One");
button2 = new Button("Button Two");
button3 = new Button("Button Three");
add(button1);
add(button2);
add(button3);
}
}

47

Handling Button Events

• Attach an ActionListener to the Button and
handle the event in actionPerformed
public class MyActionListener
implements ActionListener {
public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent event) {
...
}
}

public class SomeClassThatUsesButtons {

...
MyActionListener listener = new MyActionListener(...);
Button b1 = new Button("...");
b1.addActionListener(listener);
...
48
}
 Checkboxes
• Constructors
– These three constructors apply to checkboxes that operate
independently of each other (i.e., not radio buttons)
– Checkbox()
• Creates an initially unchecked checkbox with no label
– Checkbox(String checkboxLabel)
• Creates a checkbox (initially unchecked) with the specified
label; see setState for changing it
– Checkbox(String checkboxLabel, boolean state)
• Creates a checkbox with the specified label
– The initial state is determined by the boolean value provided
– A value of true means it is checked

49

Checkbox, Example
public class Checkboxes extends CloseableFrame {
public Checkboxes() {
super("Checkboxes");
setFont(new Font("SansSerif", Font.BOLD, 18));
setLayout(new GridLayout(0, 2));
Checkbox box;
for(int i=0; i<12; i++) {
box = new Checkbox("Checkbox " + i);
if (i%2 == 0) {
box.setState(true);
}
add(box);
}
pack();
setVisible(true);
}
}
50
 Other Checkbox Methods
• getState/setState
– Retrieves or sets the state of the checkbox: checked (true)
or unchecked (false)
• getLabel/setLabel
– Retrieves or sets the label of the checkbox
– After changing the label invalidate and validate the
window to force a new layout
someCheckbox.setLabel("A New Label");
someCheckbox.getParent().invalidate();
someCheckbox.getParent().validate();

• addItemListener/removeItemListener
– Add or remove an ItemListener to process
ItemEvents in itemStateChanged
• processItemEvent(ItemEvent event)
– Low-level event handling
51

Handling Checkbox Events

• Attach an ItemListener
– Add it with addItemListener and process the ItemEvent in
itemStateChanged
public void itemStateChanged(ItemEvent event) {
...
}
• The ItemEvent class has a getItem method which returns
the item just selected or deselected
• The return value of getItem is an Object so you should
cast it to a String before using it
• Ignore the event
– With checkboxes, it is relatively common to ignore the
select/deselect event when it occurs
– Instead, you look up the state (checked/unchecked) of the
checkbox later using the getState method of Checkbox
52
when you are ready to take some other sort of action
 Checkbox Groups
(Radio Buttons)
• CheckboxGroup Constructors
– CheckboxGroup()
• Creates a non-graphical object used as a “tag” to group
checkboxes logically together
• Checkboxes with the same tag will look and act like radio
buttons
• Only one checkbox associated with a particular tag can be
selected at any given time
• Checkbox Constructors
– Checkbox(String label, CheckboxGroup group,
boolean state)
• Creates a radio button associated with the specified group,
with the given label and initial state
• If you specify an initial state of true for more than one
Checkbox in a group, the last one will be shown selected

53

CheckboxGroup: Example
import java.applet.Applet;
import java.awt.*;

public class CheckboxGroups extends Applet {

public void init() {
setLayout(new GridLayout(4, 2));
setBackground(Color.LIGHT_GRAY);
setFont(new Font("Serif", Font.BOLD, 16));
add(new Label("Flavor", Label.CENTER));
add(new Label("Toppings", Label.CENTER));
CheckboxGroup flavorGroup = new CheckboxGroup();
add(new Checkbox("Vanilla", flavorGroup, true));
add(new Checkbox("Colored Sprinkles"));
add(new Checkbox("Chocolate", flavorGroup, false));
add(new Checkbox("Cashews"));
add(new Checkbox("Strawberry", flavorGroup, false));
add(new Checkbox("Kiwi"));
}
}
54
 CheckboxGroup: Result

By tagging Checkboxes with a CheckboxGroup, the Checkboxes

in the group function as radio buttons
55

Other Methods for Radio

Buttons
• CheckboxGroup
– getSelectedCheckbox
• Returns the radio button (Checkbox) that is currently
selected or null if none is selected
• Checkbox
– In addition to the general methods described in
Checkboxes, Checkbox has the following two methods
specific to CheckboxGroup’s:
– getCheckboxGroup/setCheckboxGroup
• Determines or registers the group associated with the
radio button

• Note: Event-handling is the same as with Checkboxes

56
 List Boxes
• Constructors
– List(int rows, boolean multiSelectable)
• Creates a listbox with the specified number of visible rows (not
items)
• Depending on the number of item in the list (addItem or add), a
scrollbar is automatically created
• The second argument determines if the List is multiselectable
• The preferred width is set to a platform-dependent value, and is
typically not directly related to the width of the widest entry
– List()
• Creates a single-selectable list box with a platform-dependent
number of rows and a platform-dependent width
– List(int rows)
• Creates a single-selectable list box with the specified number of
rows and a platform-dependent width

57

List Boxes: Example

import java.awt.*;

public class Lists extends CloseableFrame {

public Lists() {
super("Lists");
setLayout(new FlowLayout());
setBackground(Color.LIGHT_GRAY);
setFont(new Font("SansSerif", Font.BOLD, 18));
List list1 = new List(3, false);
list1.add("Vanilla");
list1.add("Chocolate");
list1.add("Strawberry");
add(list1);
List list2 = new List(3, true);
list2.add("Colored Sprinkles");
list2.add("Cashews");
list2.add("Kiwi");
add(list2);
pack();
setVisible(true);
58
}}
 List Boxes: Result

A list can be single-selectable or multi-selectable

59

Other List Methods

• add
– Add an item at the end or specified position in the list box
– All items at that index or later get moved down
• isMultipleMode
– Determines if the list is multiple selectable (true) or single
selectable (false)
• remove/removeAll
– Remove an item or all items from the list
• getSelectedIndex
– For a single-selectable list, this returns the index of the selected item
– Returns –1 if nothing is selected or if the list permits multiple
selections
• getSelectedIndexes
– Returns an array of the indexes of all selected items
• Works for single- or multi-selectable lists
• If no items are selected, a zero-length (but non-null) array is
60 returned
 Other List Methods (Continued)
• getSelectedItem
– For a single-selectable list, this returns the label of the selected item
– Returns null if nothing is selected or if the list permits multiple
selections
• getSelectedItems
– Returns an array of all selected items
– Works for single- or multi-selectable lists
• If no items are selected, a zero-length (but non-null) array is
returned
• select
– Programmatically selects the item in the list
– If the list does not permit multiple selections, then the previously
selected item, if any, is also deselected

61

Handling List Events

• addItemListener/removeItemListener
– ItemEvents are generated whenever an item is selected or
deselected (single-click)
– Handle ItemEvents in itemStateChanged
• addActionListener/removeActionListener
– ActionEvents are generated whenever an item is double-
clicked or RETURN (ENTER) is pressed while selected
– Handle ActionEvents in actionPerformed

62
 Other GUI Controls
• Choice Lists (Combo Boxes)

• Textfields

63

Other GUI Controls (Continued)

• Text Areas

• Labels

64
 Summary
• Native components behind the scenes
– So, all windows and graphical components are rectangular and
opaque, and take look-and-feel of underlying OS.
• Windows
– Canvas: drawing area or custom component
– Panel: grouping other components
– Frame: popup window
• GUI Controls
– Button: handle events with ActionListener
– Checkbox, radio button: handle events with ItemListener
– List box: handle single click with ItemListener,
double click with ActionListener
– To quickly determine the event handlers for a component,
simply look at the online API
• addXxxListener methods are at the top
65

© 2014 Marty Hall

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