The Java TM Tutorial

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Trail: Creating a GUI with JFC/Swing
Lesson: Using Swing Components

## How to Use Panels

> The `JPanel` class provides general-purpose containers for lightweight components. By default, panels don't paint anything except for their background; however, you can easily add borders to them and otherwise customize their painting. For information about using panels to perform custom painting, see Overview of Custom Painting.

> By default, panels are opaque. This makes them work well as content panes, and can help painting efficiency, as described in Painting. You can make a panel transparent by invoking `setOpaque(false)`. A transparent panel draws no background, so that any components underneath show through.

### An Example

> The Converter application described in The Anatomy of a Swing-Based Program uses panels in several ways:
> - One `JPanel` instance serves as a content pane for the application's frame. This content pane uses a two-row `GridLayout` to lay out its contents, and an empty border to put 5 pixels of space around them. See Using Top-Level Containers for information about content panes.
> - Two instances of a `JPanel` subclass, named `ConversionPanel`, are used to both contain components and coordinate communication between components. The panels also have titled borders, which describe their contents and paint a line around them. The panels use left-to-right `BoxLayout` objects to lay out their contents.
> - Two instances of an unnamed `JPanel` subclass are used to group components and restrict their size. The panels use top-to-bottom `BoxLayout` objects to lay out their contents.
> The following picture is the same as a picture in The Anatomy of a Swing-Based Program. It shows a colorized version of Converter, in which each panel has a background color.

> As the figure shows, panels are useful for grouping components, simplifying component layout, and putting borders around groups of components. The rest of this section gives hints on grouping and laying out components. For information about using borders, see How to Use Borders.

### Setting the Layout Manager

> Like other containers, a panel uses a layout manager to position and size its components. By default, a panel's layout manager is an instance of `FlowLayout`, which places the panel's contents in a row. You can easily make a panel use any other layout manager by invoking the `setLayout` method or specifying a layout manager when creating the panel. Here is an example of the first approach:

> >     JPanel aPanel = new JPanel();
> >     aPanel.setLayout(new BorderLayout());

> Here is an example of setting the layout manager at instantiation:

> >     JPanel aPanel = new JPanel(new BorderLayout());

> For more information about choosing and using layout managers, see Laying Out Components Within a Container.

### Adding Components

> When you add components to a panel, you use the `add` method. Exactly which arguments you specify to the `add` method depend on which layout manager the panel uses. When the layout manager is `FlowLayout`, `BoxLayout`, `GridLayout`, or `GridBagLayout`, you'll typically use the one-argument `add` method, like this:

> >     aFlowPanel.add(aComponent);
> >     aFlowPanel.add(anotherComponent);

> When the layout manager is `BorderLayout`, you need to provide a second argument specifying the added component's position within the panel. For example:

> >     aBorderPanel.add(aComponent, BorderLayout.CENTER);
> >     aBorderPanel.add(anotherComponent, BorderLayout.SOUTH);

> For information on the arguments to use with `BorderLayout`, see Using BorderLayout.

### The Panel API

> The API in the `JPanel` class itself is minimal. The methods you are most likely to invoke on a `JPanel` object are those it inherits from its superclasses -- `JComponent`, `Container`, and `Component`. The following tables list the API you're most likely to use, with the exception of methods related to borders and layout hints. For more information about the API all `JComponent`s can use, see The JComponent Class.

> - Creating a `JPanel`
> - Managing a Container's Components
> - Setting/Getting the Layout Manager

> Creating a `JPanel`
> Constructor | Purpose
> --- | ---
> `JPanel() JPanel(LayoutManager)` | Create a panel. The `LayoutManager` parameter provides a layout manager for the new panel. By default, a panel uses a `FlowLayout` to lay out its components.

> Managing a Container's Components
> Method | Purpose
> --- | ---
> `void add(Component) void add(Component, int) void add(Component, Object) void add(Component, Object, int) void add(String, Component)` | Add the specified component to the panel. When present, the `int` parameter is the index of the component within the container. By default, the first component added is at index 0, the second is at index 1, and so on. The `Object` parameter is layout manager dependent and typically provides information to the layout manager regarding positioning and other layout constraints for the added component. The `String` parameter is similar to the `Object` parameter.
> `int getComponentCount()` | Get the number of components in this panel.
> `Component getComponent(int) Component getComponentAt(int, int) Component getComponentAt(Point) Component[] getComponents()` | Get the specified component or components. You can get a component based on its index or x, y position.
> `void remove(Component) void remove(int) void removeAll()` | Remove the specified component(s).

> Setting/Getting the Layout Manager
> Method | Purpose
> --- | ---
> `void setLayout(LayoutManager) LayoutManager getLayout()` | Set or get the layout manager for this panel. The layout manager is responsible for positioning the panel's components within the panel's bounds according to some philosophy.

### Examples that Use Panels

> Many examples contained in this lesson use `JPanel` objects. The following table lists a few.

> Example | Where Described | Notes
> --- | --- | ---
> `Converter` and other files | This section and The Anatomy of a Swing-Based Program | Uses five panels, four of which use `BoxLayout` and one of which uses `GridLayout`. The panels use borders and, as necessary, size and alignment hints to affect layout.
> `ListDemo` | How to Use Lists | Uses a panel, with its default `FlowLayout` manager, to center three components in a row.
> `ToolBarDemo` | How to Use Toolbar | Uses a panel as a content pane. The panel contains three components, laid out by `BorderLayout`.
> `BorderDemo` | How to Use Borders | Contains many panels that have various kinds of borders. Several panels use `BoxLayout`.
> `BoxLayoutDemo` | How to Use BoxLayout | Illustrates the use of a panel with Swing's `BoxLayout` manager.

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