Problem with JLabel width

Question

Well, the subject is quite clear.
I created a JLabel, and when I wanna know what its width is, 0 is returned.
This is the code, which is really simple :
import javax.swing.JLabel;
import javax.swing.JFrame;
public class Essai extends JFrame{
public Essai(){
JLabel j = new JLabel("hello");
this.getContentPane.add(j);
System.out.println(j.getWidth());
this.show();
public static void main(String[] args){
Essai essai1 = new Essai();
Well, I really need the width of the component, so, could somebody help me ?
I thank you all for having read my post.
have a good day

Answer 1

Hi,
You should call getPreferredSize to get the size of the label. PreferredSize is the width and height that the label thinks it should be and is what the layout manager will request of it to perform its' layout. The size is the actual size that the layout manager will assign to the label and is not valid until the layout manager is done managing (after show or pack are called).
Regards,
Manfred.