Java GUI Development: BorderLayout, Frame & Dialog Box

BorderLayout

• A BorderLayout arranges components in five regions: North, South, East, West, and Center.
• The BorderLayout is used to organize the content of a window, often for placement of main menu or toolbars.
• Regions can only hold one component and stretch to fill the available space.

Frame

• A Frame is a top-level window with title bar, menu bar, resizing corner, and other features.
• It is a fundamental component used as the base for GUI applications.
• Constructors:
  • Frame(): Creates a frame without a title.
  • Frame(String title): Creates a frame with the specified title.
• Methods:
  • setVisible(true/false): Makes the frame visible or invisible.
  • setSize(int width,int height): Sets the width and height of the frame as specified.
  • setTitle(String title): Sets the title of the Frame.

Dialog Box

• A Dialog Box is a window that provides additional information or gathers input from the user. It is a child window of another window, often a Frame.
• Types:
  • Model Dialog: User input is directed to the dialog box, and the main program is blocked until the dialog box is closed.
  • Modeless Dialog: Input focus can be directed to other windows without blocking the program.
• Constructors:
  • Dialog(Frame parentwindow, boolean mode): Creates a dialog box associated with a specified parent window and determines whether it is modal or modeless.
  • Dialog(Frame parentwindow, String str, boolean mode): Creates a dialog box with a title and a specified parent window.

Text Area

• A TextArea is an area for displaying or editing multiple lines of text.
• It can contain scrollbars to navigate the text.
• Constructors:
  • TextArea(): Creates an empty text area.
  • TextArea(int rows, int columns): Creates a text area with the specified number of rows and columns.
  • TextArea(String text, int rows int columns, int scrollbar): Creates a text area with specified text, rows, columns, and potentially adding scroll bars.

Scrollbar

- A Scrollbar is a component that allows users to move through a large amount of content.
- Types:
	- **Horizontal Scrollbar**: Allows navigating horizontally across content.
	- **Vertical Scrollbar**: Allows navigating vertically across content. 
- **Constructors**:
	- `Scrollbar()`: Creates a vertical scrollbar. 
	- `Scrollbar(int type)`: creates vertical or horizontal scrollbar based on `type`.
	- `Scrollbar(int type, int intial_value, int thumb_size, int min_value, int max_value);` 
- **Methods**:
	- `setValues(int initial_value, int thumb_size, int min_value, int max_value);`: Updates the scrollbar's values.
	- `getMinimum()`, `getMaximum()`, `getValue()`, `setValue(int value)`: Retrieve and set the scrollbar's values.

Menu and MenuBar

• A MenuBar is a top-level container used to create menus that provide options to users.
• It is typically found at the top of a frame or window.
• It organizes menus into separate sections.
• MenuBar Class:
  • Constructor: MenuBar(): Creates an empty menu bar.
  • Methods: void setMenuBar(MenuBar object): Sets the menu bar for a frame.
• Menu Class:
  • Constructors:
    • Menu(): Creates an empty menu.
    • Menu(String str): Creates a menu with a specified title.
    • Menu(String str, boolean flag): Creates a menu with a specified title, and flag can control whether the pop-up menu can be free-floating.
• MenuItem Class:
  • Constructors:
    • MenuItem(): Creates an empty menu item.
    • MenuItem(String str): Creates a menu item with a specified label.
    • MenuItem(String str, MenuShortcut key): Creates a menu item with a label and optionally a keyboard shortcut.
  • Methods:
    • void setEnabled(boolean flag), boolean isEnable(): Sets the enabled or disabled state of the menu item.
    • void setLabel(String str): Sets the label of the menu item.
    • String getLabel(): Retrieves the label of the menu item.

CheckboxMenuItem

• A CheckboxMenuItem is a type of menu item that can be checked (or unchecked) to indicate a selection.
• Constructors:
  • CheckboxMenuItem(): Creates an empty checkbox item.
  • CheckboxMenuItem(String str): Creates a checkbox item with a specific label.
  • CheckboxMenuItem(String str, boolean flag): Creates a checkbox item with a label and an initial state (checked or unchecked).
• Methods:
  • void setState(boolean flag): Sets the state of the checkbox item (checked or unchecked).
  • boolean getState(): Retrieves the current state of the checkbox item.

This quiz covers essential concepts in Java GUI development including the usage of BorderLayout, Frame creation, and dialog boxes. Test your knowledge of how these components function and their importance in building user interfaces. Perfect for beginners looking to solidify their understanding of GUI elements in Java.