Paint()/repaint() problem w/applet

Question

Hi all. Here's my dilemma: I'm trying to create an applet that asks for simple multiplication answers, and draws a string giving feedback after the question is answered ("Very good!" or "No, try again."). The problem is that the book says to draw everything from paint(), and gives the impression that repaint() should magically refresh everything on the applet, which it does not. How can I make the strings I drew in paint() go away and give way to new strings based on user answer (whether correct or not), instead of piling up on top of each other, because they don't refresh? Also, my JButton and JTextField aren't showing up until the mouse is scrolled over them. Thanks for your time!
code:
import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import java.util.*;
public class Week5Class extends JApplet implements ActionListener
    static int int1 = (int)(Math.random()*10);
    static int int2 = (int)(Math.random()*10);
    JTextField answer = new JTextField(3);
    JButton verifyAnswer = new JButton("Click to see if correct");
    public void init()
        Container myContainer = getContentPane();
        myContainer.add(answer);
        myContainer.add(verifyAnswer);
        verifyAnswer.addActionListener(this);
        myContainer.setLayout(new FlowLayout());
    static int j = 0;
    static int i;
    public void paint(Graphics gr)
          gr.drawString("How much is " + int1 + " * " + int2 + "?", 10, 70);
          if(i == 1)
              gr.drawString("VeryGood!", 300, 200);
          else if(i == 0 && j != 0)
              gr.drawString("No. Please try again.", 300, 200);
          j++;
    public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e)
        int x = 300;
        int y = 200;
        if(Integer.parseInt(answer.getText()) == (int1*int2))
            int1 = (int)(Math.random()*10);
            int2 = (int)(Math.random()*10);
            i = 1;
            repaint();
        else
            i = 0;
            repaint();
}

Answer 1

The problem is that you're mixing doing your own drawing and using child objects. The paint method you've overriden would be the one that draws the text field and button.
A far easier approach would be to use a JLabel to display your response message, and insert that as another component into the container, as you've inserted the button and input field.
Then use setText() on the label to change the message.
If you really want to have an area that you draw arbitary shapes on it's best to create your own child component, add it to the container, and override it's paintComponent method. Alternatively create a class which implments the Icon interface and put it in a JLabel.
FlowLayout isn't very clever, by the way, try a BorderLayout or maybe a BoxLayout.