The Great GUI Builder Mystery

I am trying to create a GUI Builder using Java. I have searched high and low, low and high, and I have not been able to figure out how to set the design time behaviour of a JavaBean (or any component for that matter). Theoretically (according to the JavaBeans API) this is done using the setDesignTime() method, but how can I apply this to a javax.swing.JButton, for example?
The BDK, and Bean Builder tools accomplish design time behaviour, but I am still unable to figure out how it is done (even after viewing the source code provided). (It appears as though those tools emulate design time behaviour.)
Can someone give me some help or direct me to a place where I can find the help that I need?

Ok.....
Is there any way to make a swing component behave as if it is in design time mode?
If I am completely lost, please give me a hint as to where I can find the information that I need.
Please help!

Similar Messages

The Great iMac FireWire Mystery

I'm stumped on this one and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions.
A couple of months ago I replaced my mother's mirror door G4 (2x1GHz) with a 20" 2.16GHz Intel iMac (the last of the all-white iMacs). Her G4 had an 80GB and a 60GB internal hard drives, with the 80GB being the boot drive and the 60GB being accessed exclusively by Retrospect to do incremental backups on a nightly basis and a recycle backup once a month. This system worked quite well for the past couple of years.
Her iMac has a 250GB internal drive. I added a Newer Tech miniStack v2 200GB hard drive which I have connected via FireWire. Using the same Retrospect-based system, backups are performed regularly. However, there's a fly in the ointment. Occasionally and for reasons unknown the computer will unmount the FireWire drive all by itself. This happens regardless of whether the computer is idle or in use. Power cycling the drive will remount it and all is well afterwards -- until the next time. It seems to happen about once every 2-3 days. The drive can be connected for 2-3 days at a time without any problems, but then it just disappears. Poof.
Things to remove from the list right off the bat...
1. The miniStack drive is fine, having performed its duties on several other computers in the past and operating flawlessly in the same capacity on other computers (including a MacBook Pro and an aluminum iMac).
2. OS X is set to sleep the drive when it's not in use. Since the incremental backup process takes less than five minutes a day to complete, having the drive spun up 24/7/365 makes little sense. The drive happily spins up when Retrospect does its thing (assuming the drive is still on the desktop at that time, of course) and the drive happily spins down shortly after Retrospect finishes (again, assuming...). A suggestion of "turn drive sleep off" is not acceptable for this reason, and for the fact that the other computers that the drive was attached to also had drive sleep enabled and didn't have this problem.
3. The OS X installation (10.4.10) is very clean, having been installed when the iMac was installed. There are no "haxies" or anything weird like that installed. The only "modification" to the system is enabling the DEBUG menu in Safari. When I put the iMac into target disk mode and boot my wife's MacBook Pro from the iMac's hard drive, the miniStack drive does not show this problem. If the OS X installation was to blame then the MacBook Pro should also have lost the drive.
4. I've also gone the other way, booting the iMac from the MacBook Pro's OS (10.4.8 and 10.4.10) in target disk mode. The problem remains on the iMac.
5. The iMac itself has been checked out by Tekserve and the Apple Store, both in Manhattan, and has been pronounced 100% without error or problem. The iMac also passes the hardware test provided on the Apple CD and the TechTool Pro diagnostic. All other aspects of the computer perform flawlessly.
6. The FireWire cable has been replaced, and both the old and new cables are perfectly functional with all other drives and computers tested.
7. With one exception, other FireWire devices on the iMac seem to work flawlessly in all other regards. I've tried two camcorders, an iSight webcam, a friend's FireWire-to-MIDI box, a DVD burner, and a FireWire CF card adapter. All perform perfectly. The one exception is a 60GB portable FireWire hard drive. This drive performs exactly the same way on the iMac; that is; you can connect it and use it without a problem, but if you keep it connected for 2-3 days it too disappears from the desktop just like the miniStack drive. (I had a 2GB CF card connected to a FireWire CD card adapter, and it was mounted on the desktop as a formatted Mac volume. This card stayed on the desktop for five days without a problem, so the problem seems to be localized to actual hard drives and not just mass storage devices.)
8. The iMac performs perfectly in target disk mode. I had it in TDM connected to the MacBook Pro for several days and it never disappeared.
So, I'm at a loss. My current "fix" is to connect the drive to the iMac via USB and that seems to be working. That seems to indicate that it's a FireWire problem but I've never heard of one so specific to one particular category of hardware before (e.g., hard drives). Regardless, that doesn't solve this mystery. Yes, the drive works under USB....but why not FireWire like it should?

I have been having similar problems with a Mybook FW HD disappearing and remounting at random intervls. I am in the process of replacing it with a Fantom 1000.( I have a 300G Fantom with an Oxford chipsest that has been completley reliable for > 2yrs attached via FW400).
The Fantom 1000 mounted immediately with FW800, but as it was Fat32 formatted I decided to erase and reformat with MacOS extended using disk utility. I haven't been able to mount the final product, although it is recognized and described by the System. Disk utility can't verify or repair due to a formatting error.. I should mention that disk utility never gave any indication that it had finished the formating.. the blue barber pole was still spinning after 12 hrs
How long should it take to format a 1T disk?
Anyway now I am trying using a FW400 port and am about 1 hr into it...... next I will try USB and if that fails I will try to return to FAT 32... I should have quit while I was ahead
My question .... is this a FW problem, a Fantom problem or a formatting (Disk utility probem)

The Great Hard Drive Mystery

I have a huge mystery and I need help. Two hard drives hang in the balance! Have your attention? okay...here's the story (flash back)...
I have two internal hard drives put into two acomdata external hard drive shells. They've worked for two years. I moved into an apartment with carpet (potentially important info) and got set up. I'd been having power issues even at my old place. The power cord to the drives were not giving them enough juice to spin up. The drives would try, but couldn't. I ended up buying a new power cord on ebay. I got it in the mail and plugged it in. It worked! However, it seemed one of my shells was not starting up, not even lighting up. Whatever though, I let the one shell be my life boat to get the data off these drives.
Before I transfered the data, I opened the casing, but then closed it up again (realizing I should get the data off first before I swap the drives). When I tried transferring the data there was a privacy issue so i set the drive to "read & write". Shortly after, the drive dismounted and did not spin up.
I went and bought a new acomdata external shell thinking that was the cause. To my shock, it was not. The good (yet bad) news here is that both drives are not spinning up. That's potentially good as it could mean there's something beyond the drives that's wrong.
So, what I have in front of me are two functioning acomdata shells, two internal hard drives that aren't spinning up, and one acomdata shell that's simply not working all together. I have no idea what could be the problem yet have suspected static electricity, power supply, and (which is why I post here) Leopard software blockage.
What do you think my Sherlockian friend?

Good point. It just doesn't feel right both drives dying at the same time. And obviously I don't want to come to that conclusion. Yet, I do have to rule that out at some point if no other possibility is working.
I haven't called Acomdata just yet, but I'm certain they won't give me many answers.

The great CD drive mystery !!!

I recently decided to upgrade to a DVD writer ............ so I took out the old CD Rom drive and insert the new one (with all the correct settings etc). Started the PC up and everything was fine, games played, music played etc. Powered the PC down and on again a few times and each time it booted perfectly.
Went to install Nero 6, which came with the LG GSA4120B drive, and it crashed half way through, saying that it couldn't copy one of the files. So tried again and it crashed at exactly the same point. Thought it was a bit strange as things normally blow up when you go to run them and not just install them !!
So powered down and left it for the day.
The next day I booted up and everything seemed fine until I double clicked on the CD drive in My Computer ............... and the PC screen went black (as if on standby) ........... and the PC just died. Even the Reset button wouldn't work, I had to use the On/Off button at the back. Again and again it happened. Then it went to the next stage which was as soon as Windows started it did the same thing. I then took the drive out and put the old one back in and the same thing still happened.
The only way that I could get it to boot was to disconnect the CD drive altogether, and the PC runs fine. I've gone through Windows settings and motherboard BIOS settings and can't find anything which I would class as out of the ordinary.
So I thought I would install newer Geforce drivers to see what that would do and it still crashed if the CD drive was connected on the Secondary IDE as a Master. I thought I would try it as a Slave and the PC now boots but the weirdest thing happens ................. you can access the cd drives, play games fine, play music fine (using a CD that was in the PC when it booted) but if eject the CD tray, the PC crashes as before i.e. black screen ??!!!???
I'm at a loss .............. twenty years of PC'ing and for the life of me I can't work out the significance of the what happens when the tray opens for Windows to crash.
Please help someone ................. I been ready your forum for a few days and you guys seem to know your stuff.
PC mobo is MSI 6382e with AMD XP2000+ proc, graphics card MSI 8878 MX420.

If you search the MS knowledgebase I think you'll find how to restore the last good version of the Win98SE registry. Basically it goes like this:
1. Registry comprises 2 files which are something like system.dat & user.dat & you'll find them if you make Explorer display hidden & system files (in the root of C: I think but if not then search)
2. You should also find the same files with .bak extensions.
3. You need to reboot in DOS mode, rename the .dat files to e.g. .old, rename the .bak files to . dat & restart.
If you don't like what you get you can reverse the .old files back to .dat fiels and you are back to where you were.
All this may be too late if you have successfully booted with these problems because you will have overwritten the backups. I would suggest try a repair install of your OS, assuming you still have the CD.

GUI builder for Eclipse

Hello
Does the IDE Eclipse provide a drag-and-drop GUI builder, can it create that MS visual studio feel, am new to java and just after some quick answers...any help will be much appreciated..
cheers Lee

Here are your quick answers:
No Eclipse does not come with one, Eclpise barely comes with anything, you have to find a plugin for it.
Yes there are several plugins for GUI drag and drop. I tried them and most outright suck, none even compare to Netbeans.
Here are the quick answers you don't want to here but need to take to heart:
If you choose to use the netbeans GUI builder as someone who is new to java, you will only be doing yourself a huge disservice. I am not saying this because I am anti netbeans, I used eclipse exclusively until about a year ago, now i prefer netbeans but still use eclipse on occasion. The reason i prefer netbeans is because of it's GUI builder. I love it, and I use it alot.
So why am I suggesting you not use it? Simple really, I programmed GUIs using swing for years before using the GUI builder. I know swing very well, we are good buds. Because of this I am able to maximize the netbeans GUI builder to do amazing stuff with it quickly and easily. If I didn't know swing already, the Netbeans GUI builder would be a handicap and at the same time a crutch saving me from the handicap while keeping me handicapped.
If you use the GUI builder before you know swing you will never be able to add to its palette or functionality, never be able to modify the autogenerated code, and learn more wrong swing practices than right ones. Yes it sucks to have to do something by hand when you know there is a tool that can do it. But you will be extremely thankful you invested the time learning swing first when you do start using the GUI builder.
And I am not a fool, I know you are not going to listen to me, no one listens to just some guy saying you should do it the hard way first so you will be much better at doing it the easy way later. They all think either that they are special and can figure swing out while using the GUI builder, or that they will go back and learn it right later (as if they will have more time then). Listen if you want to, don't if you don't want to. If you do great, if not better job security for me. But everyone who doesn't winds up wishing they did, at least on this point.
JSG

Using JFileChooser in GUI Builder / Matisse

Would appreciate any help with how to modify the code created by the NetBeans GUI Builder / Matisse to use jFileChooser.
I've added a Menu item to act as a file Open option, called OpenItem, and the GUI builder has added a listener which points to a method OpenItemActionPerformed:
private void OpenItemActionPerformed(java.awt.event.ActionEvent evt) {
        // TODO add your handling code here:
} I have also added a jFileChooser component, named jFileChooser1, but if I try to use it in the OpenItemActionPerformed method I get an error.
private void OpenItemActionPerformed(java.awt.event.ActionEvent evt) {
       JFileChooser1.
}     shows error: "<identifier> expected" (as soon as I get to the dot).
The variable seems to be defined:
private void initComponents() {
        jFileChooser1 = new javax.swing.JFileChooser();
}// Variables declaration - do not modify
private javax.swing.JFileChooser jFileChooser1;
// End of variables declaration
Maybe I have gone about this the wrong way, so any clues as to either how I can get the jFileChooser1 variable to work or any way I can use JFilechooser with GUI Builder created application would be much appreciated.
Thanx in advance.

The following example creates a file chooser and displays it as first an open-file dialog and then as a save-file dialog:
    String filename = File.separator+"tmp";
    JFileChooser fc = new JFileChooser(new File(filename));
    // Show open dialog; this method does not return until the dialog is closed
    fc.showOpenDialog(frame);
    File selFile = fc.getSelectedFile();
    // Show save dialog; this method does not return until the dialog is closed
    fc.showSaveDialog(frame);
    selFile = fc.getSelectedFile();Here is a more elaborate example that creates two buttons that create and show file chooser dialogs.
    // This action creates and shows a modal open-file dialog.
    public class OpenFileAction extends AbstractAction {
        JFrame frame;
        JFileChooser chooser;
        OpenFileAction(JFrame frame, JFileChooser chooser) {
            super("Open...");
            this.chooser = chooser;
            this.frame = frame;
        public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent evt) {
            // Show dialog; this method does not return until dialog is closed
            chooser.showOpenDialog(frame);
            // Get the selected file
            File file = chooser.getSelectedFile();
    // This action creates and shows a modal save-file dialog.
    public class SaveFileAction extends AbstractAction {
        JFileChooser chooser;
        JFrame frame;
        SaveFileAction(JFrame frame, JFileChooser chooser) {
            super("Save As...");
            this.chooser = chooser;
            this.frame = frame;
        public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent evt) {
            // Show dialog; this method does not return until dialog is closed
            chooser.showSaveDialog(frame);
            // Get the selected file
            File file = chooser.getSelectedFile();
    };Here's some code that demonstrates the use of the actions:
    JFrame frame = new JFrame();
    // Create a file chooser
    String filename = File.separator+"tmp";
    JFileChooser fc = new JFileChooser(new File(filename));
    // Create the actions
    Action openAction = new OpenFileAction(frame, fc);
    Action saveAction = new SaveFileAction(frame, fc);
    // Create buttons for the actions
    JButton openButton = new JButton(openAction);
    JButton saveButton = new JButton(saveAction);
    // Add the buttons to the frame and show the frame
    frame.getContentPane().add(openButton, BorderLayout.NORTH);
    frame.getContentPane().add(saveButton, BorderLayout.SOUTH);
    frame.pack();
    frame.setVisible(true);

JavaFX Visual GUI Builder - not using FXML - only based on pure Java

The decision to provide a pure Java based JavaFX API activates the pure Java people who where FXML resistent in the past.
JavaFX is the future ... the last few month when I check the new possibilities I came slowly but surely to this opinion...
The Scene Build is still based on FXML. So ... for the pure Java developer there is no advantage to use it ... only to see what components are available in the JavaFX standard I see no advantage for me to use it. I won't create JavaFX clients based on FXML.
What's the future plan...is there a Project in the World who want to provide a Visual GUI Builder who produce pure Java based JavaFX Code like Eclipse Window Builder do it for Swing or SWT or JBuilder for Swing many years ago.
That's the main reason that JavaFX get successful in the future. A software architect who has to decide using JavaFX as the new Company Standard...will never do it without stomachache.
Do I miss some news?
Is there are NetBeans Version who can do it or a plugin I don't now?
Edited by: 984992 on 30.01.2013 14:24
Edited by: 984992 on 30.01.2013 14:30

I don't think you are getting it, or just making a big deal about it.
Currently SceneBuilder is connected to Netbeans using the FXML. It's not hard at all, nor is there a big issue. In the next few years Scenebuilder will be in Netbeans integrated, so it will be just like the swing gui builder. FX is still new, from a scripting lang, to a super powerful lang. FXML uses so little code.... Also you can do things either with, or without FXML, FXML IS NOT NEEDED IN FX AT ALL, only limited on Scene Builder.
This is the FXML I am using for a dice game I am creating. Not much at all.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<?import java.lang.*?>
<?import java.util.*?>
<?import javafx.collections.*?>
<?import javafx.scene.chart.*?>
<?import javafx.scene.control.*?>
<?import javafx.scene.image.*?>
<?import javafx.scene.layout.*?>
<?import javafx.scene.paint.*?>
<BorderPane fx:id="border" maxHeight="-Infinity" maxWidth="-Infinity" minHeight="-Infinity" minWidth="-Infinity" prefHeight="785.0" prefWidth="1518.0" xmlns:fx="http://javafx.com/fxml" fx:controller="ZonkController">
<left>
<AnchorPane minHeight="86.0" minWidth="62.0" prefHeight="390.0" prefWidth="768.0">
<children>
<Button fx:id="button" layoutX="126.0" layoutY="90.0" onAction="#handleButtonAction" text="Click Me!" />
<Pane fx:id="pane" layoutX="737.0" prefHeight="390.0" prefWidth="211.0" />
</children>
</AnchorPane>
</left>
<right>
<AnchorPane prefHeight="386.0" prefWidth="460.0">
<children>
<BarChart fx:id="barChart" layoutX="7.0" layoutY="-10.0" prefWidth="460.0">
<xAxis>
<CategoryAxis fx:id="names" side="BOTTOM" />
</xAxis>
<yAxis>
<NumberAxis fx:id="scores" side="LEFT" />
</yAxis>
</BarChart>
</children>
</AnchorPane>
</right>
<top>
<ImageView fx:id="iv" fitHeight="394.24998969072755" fitWidth="525.6666641235352" pickOnBounds="true" preserveRatio="true" BorderPane.alignment="TOP_CENTER" />
</top>
</BorderPane>
It is all codecompleted like a class normally would, so there is nothing to worry about :)
.CSS isn't hard either.

What is the best FREE GUI Builder in Eclipse plugin??

hello experts!!!
nid ur help... does anyone here uses Eclipse editor?? i am using Jigloo Gui Builder plugin to create GUI
BUT there GROUP layout manager it sucks its so diffucult to layout..
what is the best FREE GUI Builder in Eclipse plugin??

kagaw3000 wrote:
i am not an english speaker and i am not an American citizen.And many others here are not primary or secondary English speakers either. How can you expect them to understand you if you use strange abbreviations? Programming is an exercise in precision. If you have a question here, you would do well to communicate it precisely.
At the site [How to Ask Smart Questions|http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html#writewell] :
h1. Write in clear, grammatical, correctly-spelled language
We've found by experience that people who are careless and sloppy writers are usually also careless and sloppy at thinking and coding (often enough to bet on, anyway). Answering questions for careless and sloppy thinkers is not rewarding; we'd rather spend our time elsewhere.
So expressing your question clearly and well is important. If you can't be bothered to do that, we can't be bothered to pay attention. Spend the extra effort to polish your language. It doesn't have to be stiff or formal � in fact, hacker culture values informal, slangy and humorous language used with precision. But it has to be precise; there has to be some indication that you're thinking and paying attention.
Spell, punctuate, and capitalize correctly. Don't confuse �its� with �it's�, �loose� with �lose�, or �discrete� with �discreet�. Don't TYPE IN ALL CAPS; this is read as shouting and considered rude. (All-smalls is only slightly less annoying, as it's difficult to read. Alan Cox can get away with it, but you can't.)
More generally, if you write like a semi-literate boob you will very likely be ignored. So don't use instant-messaging shortcuts. Spelling "you" as "u" makes you look like a semi-literate boob to save two entire keystrokes. Worse: writing like a l33t script kiddie hax0r is the absolute kiss of death and guarantees you will receive nothing but stony silence (or, at best, a heaping helping of scorn and sarcasm) in return.
If you are asking questions in a forum that does not use your native language, you will get a limited amount of slack for spelling and grammar errors � but no extra slack at all for laziness (and yes, we can usually spot that difference). Also, unless you know what your respondent's languages are, write in English. Busy hackers tend to simply flush questions in languages they don't understand, and English is the working language of the Internet. By writing in English you minimize your chances that your question will be discarded unread.
the main issue here is my questionMy recommendation: learn to do Swing without a code-generator. You gain a much better understanding of the underpinnings of Swing, the layout managers, and you gain extremely good control of component placement.

JavaFx GUI builder

older releases of netbens had a Javafx composer which allows us to develop applications easily but when i download netbeans 7.1 i can't find ant gui builder!! i search lot in google but didnt found any quire i would be a great help if anyone can give a little hand
thanx
Imal hasaranga perera

Hi smith,
I have accepted the license agreement, and trying to download Windows 32-Bit(msi). It downloads 15.9 MB of 16 MB than gives a error message saying "Cannot Copy Javafx_scenebuilder-1_0-beta-b41_windows-i586-04_jun-2012[1]: Access is denied", but it saves the installer.
When I tried to run the scene builder installer it gives a Windows Installer error message saying "This installer package could not be opened. Contact the application vendor to verify that this is a valid windows installer package"
I am not getting whats going wrong. Can you please help me. Please mail it to [email protected] if possible.
Thanks a lot.

What I learned in the mortgage and build process

What I learned in my 8 month loan and new build process. -don't sweat the small stuff -no news is good news. If you send in the requested docs, and you don't hear back quickly, than all is good. Understand the farther out from closing you are, the deeper in the stack your file is. You are not the only client. At any one time the money guy has a closing on the horizon that will have priority, if your new build is due to finish in 4 more months, well guess what? All I asked was when MY closing happens in 4 days to have my file at the top, and I was reassured that would be the case. -In my situation the lender, sales, and builder all came under one umbrella. There are advantages and disadvantages of this scenario. I read the horror stories no one was looking out for me, I was going to get roasted etc. I had none of that. They were very professional. In the end I have a great home, and they made some money. Its called business. Because all worked for the same company they were committed to getting me in this house. All 3 were responsive, and each knew what the other 2 were doing. I was quickly preapproved, they only wanted 500 down in earnest, and they broke ground within 30 days after the contract was signed. They paid ALL closing costs, over 12,0000 dollars worth. The house is beautiful and well built. I've had a few minor issues (ALL new houses do) that were promptly addressed and satisfied. -My way to a new house is the middle method. 1st you pick out a spec house in the community and just move in. Works for most people. 2nd you do like I did. Pick a plan from the builder for that community. You get to pick out colors, options etc. The price given is gonna be the basic house, check that list carefully. In my case the house had many "Upgraded" options as standard. As a incentive I was given another 8,000 to use at the design center. Well we spent that and another 7 LOL. Realize it does not take long to spend 10k at the design center. 3rd option is the true custom build. You buy the lot, get the architect to draw up precisely what you want, and go find the builder, and a construction loan. You have to know what you're doing if you go this way. Its a lot of work, and I entertained no notion of this option. I mean you're gonna spend hours (days?) in Lowe's looking at door knobs, backspaslh, lights. In my route the designers had all that narrowed down for ya, so instead of looking at hundreds of tiles you chose from about 30. I liked that. Understand the builder has vendors for all that stuff, and buy it at a good price, and why they were able to build me a pretty good house for the price. -Stuff is gonna happen. Docs will be misplaced, wrongly shredded, or deleted and have to be reexcuted. Weather will be bad=more delays. Suppliers get behind and can't get stuff to the job site. Don't let it ruin your day. Just resend the docs. -the people in the pipeline work best under pressure, they're let ya know when its time to sweat. -I kept a accordion file of the stuff I turned into the money people, I kept it on my desk for quick reference for months. It became a part of me. A month after closing it now sits on my bookcase. I look to it when I want to be reminded what it took to get me here. It truly represents almost 40 years of work and life. I think I'm gonna have it buried with me. I suggest you keep a file. -don't try to match wits with these guys. A couple of times I was asked for stuff that I thought had no revelance, but I did my duty and just got it up and sent the requested info. -They want you to buy THIS house. -Know the scrore going in=understand and know YOUR credit file and how it got there and how to get it better. It will make the process much easier. I really didn't do that because I didn't know anything. I was lucky, I had a clean file, my only problem was lack of revolving credit. Because I had 6 months to work it, I was advised to go out and pick 2 more cards. I did and my scores improved 25 points right away. -if you are going to engage collections on your file, do it before applying, or get some solid advice if you're gonna do it while in the process. -do not become a slave to the process. While all this going on, live your life. Do the stuff you like doing. When you sit around and wonder what they're gonna do about your driveway all the time you whip up all kinds of ugly scenarios. -if you have issues of confrontaion, controversey, and uncooperation among any of the 3, and its not gettin better, step back and take a look. -try to get good snacks at the closing. I wanted nachos but got Keebler oatmeal cookies and mtn dew. And thats all I can think of right now.

Which means tomorrow is when we get the new update for our iPhones and I just found the answer to my question, I don't care for the new iPods, just wanted to know when the update will be available
Message was edited by: Schmitty83

Using the Netbeans GUI within a Project with existing Ant Script

I cannot seem to figure out how to use the Netbeans GUI in my Project with existing Ant Script. Is this possible? I have no problem creating GUI interfaces in a java Application, but attempting to make a new JFrame Form gives the error: package org.jdesktop.layout does not exist, and I have not been able to find a way around this. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.
Chris Coulon

OK, I think I am on the right track, but I don't understand why I am still getting this error:
clean:
compile:
Copying 1 file to /Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ
Created dir: /Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/build
Compiling 292 source files to /Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/build
/Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/plugins/Kline_Frame.java:31: package org.jdesktop.layout does not exist
org.jdesktop.layout.GroupLayout layout = new org.jdesktop.layout.GroupLayout(getContentPane());
/Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/plugins/Kline_Frame.java:31: package org.jdesktop.layout does not exist
org.jdesktop.layout.GroupLayout layout = new org.jdesktop.layout.GroupLayout(getContentPane());
/Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/plugins/Kline_Frame.java:34: package org.jdesktop.layout does not exist
layout.createParallelGroup(org.jdesktop.layout.GroupLayout.LEADING)
/Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/plugins/Kline_Frame.java:38: package org.jdesktop.layout does not exist
layout.createParallelGroup(org.jdesktop.layout.GroupLayout.LEADING)
Note: Some input files use or override a deprecated API.
Note: Recompile with -Xlint:deprecation for details.
4 errors
/Users/chris/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source/build.xml:11: Compile failed; see the compiler error output for details.
BUILD FAILED (total time: 6 seconds)
I no longer have the error in my java code in the Projects list, but I still cannot build the project. This is my current build.xml file:

<project name="ImageJ" default="run">
<target name="compile" description="Compile everything.">
      
    <copy file="dist/lib/swing-layout-1.0.3.jar" todir=".." />
    
    <mkdir dir="build" />
    
    <javac srcdir="." destdir="build" optimize="on" source="1.4" target="1.4" debug="on">
      
      
    </javac>
</target>
<target name="build" depends="compile" description="Build ij.jar.">
    
    <copy file="IJ_Props.txt" todir="build" />
    <copy file="images/microscope.gif" tofile="build/microscope.gif" />
    <copy file="images/about.jpg" tofile="build/about.jpg" />
     <copy file="plugins/MacAdapter.class" tofile="build/MacAdapter.class" />
    <copy todir="build/macros"><fileset dir="macros"/></copy>
    
    <jar jarfile="ij.jar" basedir="build"
         manifest="MANIFEST.MF" />
</target>
<target name="clean" description="Delete the build files.">
    <delete dir="build" />
    <delete file="ij.jar" />
</target>
<target name="run" depends="build" description="Build and run ImageJ.">
    <copy file="ij.jar" toDir=".." />
    <java maxmemory="640m" jar="ij.jar" fork="yes" />
</target>
<target name="run2" depends="build" description="Build and run ImageJ.">
    
    <copy file="ij.jar" toDir=".." />
    <java maxmemory="640m" dir=".." jar="ij.jar" fork="yes" />
</target>
<target name="zip" depends="clean" description="Build zrc.zip.">
    <zip zipfile="../src.zip"
       basedir=".."
       includes="source/**"
    />
</target>
<target name="javadocs" description="Build the JavaDocs.">
    <delete dir="../api" />
    <mkdir dir="../api" />
    <javadoc
           sourcepath="."
           packagenames="ij.*"
           destdir="../api"
           author="true"
           version="true"
           use="true"
           windowtitle="ImageJ API">
    </javadoc>
</target>
   </project>notice I added this line: <copy file="dist/lib/swing-layout-1.0.3.jar" todir=".." />
because the dir ".." is where the other jar files are placed, i.e.:
[GAIAG:~/**JavaProjects/Netbeans_ImageJ/source] chris% ls ..
PolarDisplay          ij.jar               swing-layout-1.0.3.jar
TestFrames          myApp
api               source
So why is the build not able to see the package org.jdesktop.layout in the jar file?
Chris

Looking for a good GUI builder

Hello,
I'm beginning a huge software project that invloves multiple JFrames. I am having difficulties finding a GUI builder that will allow me to place objects on a frame and emit code to support that frame. I do not want to have to try 5 before I find one I like that works. I was hoping that the expereinced ones could point me in the right direction. Will NetBeans work? I prefer OpenSource solutions but commercial ones will work too.
Thanks,
Chris

Frames and panels are just types of containers. JPanel is a very generic container that doesn't do anything besides... contain stuff. :-) JFrame and the like are specialized higher level containers. When at all possible (read always) layout your gui components in a generic container, then you are free to put them in whatever specialized container you want later. JFrame, JDialog, JInternalFrame, etc. If you hard-wire them into a JFrame from the very beginning, you are really limiting your ability to change things around later.
Also, do not follow the current lazy wisdom of extending JFrames and JPanels to lay stuff out (beware, IDEs lead you down this deadend path). That is just very bad programming practice and will come to bite you eventually. You don't extend JButton to set the label do you? No... so don't extend JFrame or JPanel just to layout it's contents. Only extend an object if you are going to generally extend it's functionality... extending an object just to change it's params is wacky imho. I can't remember where this practice got started (lots of people do it), but I would like to smack that person. :-)

Developing a JAVA GUI builder

Hi,
I've been a middle tier and back end developer mostly, and i've not much development on swing. By that i mean i did not get much into swing programming other than using netbeans gui designer or jdeveloper for front end user interfaces. I have a general knowledge about swing though, how to create a custom component and stuff like that.
However, i have a personal project for which i'd really like to build a gui designer for myself. I know that i can find my through if i dig hard enough, but that means a lot of time. Yes, i can use one the existing gui builders, but this time i want to add a little bit of experience to my swing programming skills, so that i can develop tools for my own development more easily.
Looking around, i see a lot of gui builders, some being open source, but none of them gives me the impressing of being a good example for me. Some of them (like netbeans gui building code) seems to large to examine, and not many simple examples for this seem to exist.
In general, there appears to be a lack of guidance for this kind of development. Swing development resources are plenty, but what about a little more custimized goals like mine ?
I want to create a simple designer with swing, but certainly this kind of task has it's tricks ? How should i represent components (txtbox, listbox, etc) on the designer ? Do i use swing components directly in the designer ? Or do i create representations of them ? What are the tips and tricks for this kind of task ?
So, what kind of resources can i use for making this task easier for me ? Which books would be helpful ? Or any online resources for getting up to speed for creating a simple gui designer in java?
I hope i could express myself clear enoug, and It'd be really appreciated if anyone could contribute about my next step
Best regards

If you actually do go about creating a visual GUi builder, 90% of your code will revolve around using the java.beans package. So you should start learning that first.
Here is an example of how to build a visual GUI builder using the java.beans package:
https://bean-builder.dev.java.net/guide/tutorial.html
http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.4.2/docs/api/java/beans/package-summary.html

I would like to develope a GUI-Builder with Java. Any idea

Hi!
I would like to support GUI-Developers by writing a GUI-Builder with integrated design rules. For example selecting Platform dependent widgets, controlling the number of widgets on the form, proper positioning of widgets on the form etc.This should be a standalone application.
Any one with tips, tricks, literature for architecture, tools to use etc?
Thanks a million times.
Marc

Before start i would like you to visit www.netbeans.org
Here you can find a very powerful IDE for Java as you are willing to create. If you like to procide creating then also you can find idea about that.

Any Java GUI Builder, please?

Hello everybody!
I have to develop a GUI in Java and I am totally rookie on this (Java & GUI development). What I would like to know is whether there is a kind of GUI Builder for Java with free license. I mean, a program which makes me easier to choose where to put the different menus and buttoms of the GUI.
I explain you a bit more. The IDE that I have to use is Eclipse. The GUI that I have to implement will be done in Java, but what I have to do is to convert a XML file in the GUI (read, parse?). This way I will be able to modify the XML using the GUI and then save the file again (this way the XML file will have been modified). I am working in a windows environment in spite of the GUI will be able to work in Linux too (thanks to a Java VM).
Thank you very much for your answers! And remember, I need a free license program.
Fran.

Encephalopathic wrote:
My rec: don't use a GUI builder. At your stage, using one will hinder your ability to learn Swing and will set your Java education back at least 6 months if not more. Learn to code Swing by hand. They're not bad to use once you understand Swing, but even then, most professionals that I know do not use them in professional products (they say that the "ugly code" produced can be hard to maintain), but use them mainly for quick prototyping.Couldn't agree more, and I'm not even close to a professional level. I started out with Matisse in Netbeans. I spent quite some time learning how to use Matisse to build a rather large GUI. I spent even longer wrestling with it to try to get it to place components where I wanted them and at the size I wanted them. Then, after all the time spent on building the GUI, I found that I had to start over again from scratch because the code it had generated was so unnecessarily huge and fragmented that adding in the application's functionality was simply not feasible. Not to mention that after a certain point, Netbeans consumed so much memory to keep track of all the GUI elements that it crippled my PC (~997MB RAM) soon after opening the project.
So now I have to start over from scratch and have to hand-code it too. I would have been better off just starting by hand-coding in the first place. That way I wouldn't have lost so much time.
Besides, If you have to build a parser that builds the GUI from the contents of an XML file, I don't think any GUI builder would be of any use to you. Surely you'd have to study swing to a degree where you can hand-code a GUI with ease if you want to have any chance of building a program that can build a GUI on your behalf based on arbitrary XML content.
I could well be wrong because I'm still very much a beginner myself, but in my experience elsewhere I've always found that if you want to build a parser for something you're going to need to know whatever it is you're building a parser for like the back of your hand.

The Great GUI Builder Mystery

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