JTextField not showing properly in GridBagLayout

The gui I am working on consists of a series of JLabels and JTextField. When I run the gui, all of the objects display in the right places, but for some reason, the JTextFields are only appearing as small lines. when you type something into the box, the text filed expands to fit what is typed. In my previous (albeit limited) experience with GridBagLayouts, the JTextField came out in the proper size, and I am at a lost to explain why this one is acting differently from the others. Again, this particular gui is still a work in progess.

Code:

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import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;

public class recMod {

        JTextField [] recData = new JTextField[8];
        JButton [] recButtons = new JButton[3];
       
        public recMod() {
               
                JLabel [] recLabel = new JLabel[8];
                JFrame frame = new JFrame("Record Modify");
                JPanel panel = new JPanel();
               
                panel.setLayout(new GridBagLayout());
               
                recLabel[0] = new JLabel("First Name:");
                recData[0] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[0], 0, 0, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
                addItem(panel, recData[0], 1, 0, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
               
               
                recLabel[1] = new JLabel("Last Name:");
                recData[1] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[1], 3, 0, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
                addItem(panel, recData[1], 4, 0, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.EAST);
               
               
                recLabel[2] = new JLabel("Vendor:");
                recData[2] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[2], 0, 1, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
                addItem(panel, recData[2], 1, 1, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
               
               
                recLabel[3] = new JLabel("Vendor Location Code:");
                recData[3] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[3], 3, 1, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
                addItem(panel, recData[3], 4, 1, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);               
               
               
                recLabel[4] = new JLabel("user Email Address:");
                recData[4] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[4], 0, 2, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
                addItem(panel, recData[4], 1, 2, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
               
               
                recLabel[5] = new JLabel("Username:");
                recData[5] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[5], 0, 3, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
                addItem(panel, recData[5], 1, 3, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
               
               
                recLabel[6] = new JLabel("Password:");
                recData[6] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[6], 3, 3, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
                addItem(panel, recData[6], 4, 3, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
               
               
                recLabel[7] = new JLabel("user code:");
                recData[7] = new JTextField("");
                addItem(panel, recLabel[7], 0, 4, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
                addItem(panel, recData[7], 1, 4, 1, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);

               
                frame.add(panel);
                frame.setVisible(true);
                frame.setSize(500,400);
               
        }
       
        private void addItem(JPanel p, JComponent c, int x, int y,
                        int width, int height, int align) {
               
                GridBagConstraints gbc = new GridBagConstraints();
               
                gbc.gridx = x;
                gbc.gridy = y;
                gbc.gridwidth = width;
                gbc.gridheight = height;
                gbc.weightx = 0.0;
                gbc.weighty = 0.0;
                gbc.insets = new Insets(5,5,5,5);
                gbc.anchor = align;
                gbc.fill = GridBagConstraints.HORIZONTAL;
                p.add(c, gbc);
               
        }
       
        public static void main(String args[]) {
               
                new recMod();
               
        }
}

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by sun tutorial

note: We encourage you to specify the number of columns for each text field. If you do not specify the number of columns or a preferred size, then the field's preferred size changes whenever the text changes, which can result in unwanted layout updates.

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. .

That is actually the first thing i tried. When I first noticed the problem, I tried to set the column size of each textfield when it is created (ie recData[0] = new JTextField("", 10)), but there is no change in the gui when run.

Change your

Code:

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gbc.weightx = 0.0;
gbc.weighty = 0.0;

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to some values then.

changing the values for the weights (for example, 50 or 100) expands the textfields to about 2 characters long, and locks them to that size. It also creates huge gaps between the components in a row, and the row themselves.

Part of your problem may be in your setting the size of the JFrame rather than letting the layout managers find the best size via the pack() method. If your size is too small in the horizontal direction, it may compress your JTextFields to nothingness.

e.g.,

Code:

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import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Map;

public class recMod {
  public enum RecFieldNames {
    FIRST_NAME("First Name:"),
    LAST_NAME("Last Name:"),
    VENDOR("Vendor:"),
    VENDOR_LOC_CODE("Vendor Location Code:"),
    USER_EMAIL("User Email Address:"),
    USER_NAME("Username:"),
    PASSWORD("Password:"),
    USER_CODE("User Code:");

    private String name;
    private RecFieldNames(String name) {
      this.name = name;
    }
   
    public String getName() {
      return name;
    }
  }
 
  private static final int FIELD_COLS = 7;
  private Map<RecFieldNames, JTextField> recFieldMap =
    new HashMap<RecFieldNames, JTextField>();
  //JButton[] recButtons = new JButton[3];

  public recMod() {

    JFrame frame = new JFrame("Record Modify");
    JPanel panel = new JPanel();

    panel.setLayout(new GridBagLayout());

    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.FIRST_NAME, 0, 0, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.LAST_NAME, 2, 0, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.CENTER, GridBagConstraints.EAST);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.VENDOR, 0, 1, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.VENDOR_LOC_CODE, 2, 1, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.CENTER, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.USER_EMAIL, 0, 2, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.USER_NAME, 0, 3, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.PASSWORD, 2, 3, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.CENTER, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
    addLabelField(panel, RecFieldNames.USER_CODE, 0, 4, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.WEST);

    frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
    frame.add(panel);
    //frame.getContentPane().setPreferredSize(new Dimension(500, 400));
    ((JComponent) frame.getContentPane()).
        setBorder(BorderFactory.createEmptyBorder(30, 30, 30, 30));
    frame.pack();
    frame.setLocationRelativeTo(null);
    frame.setVisible(true);
  }
 
  public String getFieldText(RecFieldNames rfn) {
    return recFieldMap.get(rfn).getText();
  }

  private void addLabelField(JPanel p, RecFieldNames recFieldNames, int x,
      int y, int width, int height, int labelAlign, int fieldAlign) {

    GridBagConstraints gbc = new GridBagConstraints();
    JLabel label = new JLabel(recFieldNames.getName());
    JTextField textField = new JTextField(FIELD_COLS);
    recFieldMap.put(recFieldNames, textField);
   
    gbc.gridx = x;
    gbc.gridy = y;
    gbc.gridwidth = width;
    gbc.gridheight = height;
    gbc.weightx = 1.0;
    gbc.weighty = 0.0;
    int midInset = (x == 2) ? 40 : 5;
    gbc.insets = new Insets(5, midInset, 5, 5);
    gbc.anchor = labelAlign;
    gbc.fill = GridBagConstraints.HORIZONTAL;
    p.add(label, gbc);

    gbc.gridx = x + 1;
    gbc.anchor = fieldAlign;
    gbc.insets = new Insets(5, 5, 5, 5);
    p.add(textField, gbc);
  }

  public static void main(String args[]) {

    new recMod();

  }
}

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Playing some more with this code...

Code:

---

import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.ActionEvent;
import java.awt.event.ActionListener;
import java.util.HashMap;
import java.util.Map;

public class RecordModify {
  public enum RecFieldNames {
    FIRST_NAME("First Name:"),
    LAST_NAME("Last Name:"),
    VENDOR("Vendor:"),
    VENDOR_LOC_CODE("Vendor Location Code:"),
    USER_EMAIL("User Email Address:"),
    USER_NAME("Username:"),
    PASSWORD("Password:"),
    USER_CODE("User Code:");

    private String name;
    private RecFieldNames(String name) {
      this.name = name;
    }
   
    public String getName() {
      return name;
    }
  }
 
  private static final int FIELD_COLS = 7;
  private Map<RecFieldNames, JTextField> recFieldMap =
    new HashMap<RecFieldNames, JTextField>();
  private JPanel mainPanel = new JPanel();
  private JButton getDataBtn = new JButton("Get Data");
  //JButton[] recButtons = new JButton[3];

  public RecordModify() {
    mainPanel.setLayout(new GridBagLayout());
    mainPanel.setBorder(BorderFactory.createEmptyBorder(30, 30, 10, 30));
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.FIRST_NAME, 0, 0, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.LAST_NAME, 2, 0, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.CENTER, GridBagConstraints.EAST);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.VENDOR, 0, 1, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.VENDOR_LOC_CODE, 2, 1, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.CENTER, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.USER_EMAIL, 0, 2, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.USER_NAME, 0, 3, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.PASSWORD, 2, 3, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.CENTER, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
    addLabelField(mainPanel, RecFieldNames.USER_CODE, 0, 4, 1, 1,
        GridBagConstraints.WEST, GridBagConstraints.WEST);

    JLabel blankLabel = new JLabel(" ");
    addItem(mainPanel, blankLabel, 0, 5, 4, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
    addItem(mainPanel, getDataBtn, 0, 6, 4, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);

  }
 
  public String getFieldText(RecFieldNames rfn) {
    return recFieldMap.get(rfn).getText();
  }
 
  public void setFieldText(RecFieldNames rfn, String text) {
    recFieldMap.get(rfn).setText(text);
  }
 
  public JPanel getMainPanel() {
    return mainPanel;
  }
 
  public void getDataAddListener(ActionListener al) {
    getDataBtn.addActionListener(al);
  }

  private void addLabelField(JPanel p, RecFieldNames recFieldNames, int x,
      int y, int width, int height, int labelAlign, int fieldAlign) {

    JLabel label = new JLabel(recFieldNames.getName());
    JTextField textField = new JTextField(FIELD_COLS);
    recFieldMap.put(recFieldNames, textField);
   
    addItem(p, label, x, y, width, height, labelAlign);
    addItem(p, textField, x + 1, y, width, height, fieldAlign);
  }

  private void addItem(JPanel p, Component component, int x, int y,
      int width, int height, int align) {
    GridBagConstraints gbc = new GridBagConstraints();
    gbc.gridx = x;
    gbc.gridy = y;
    gbc.gridwidth = width;
    gbc.gridheight = height;
    gbc.weightx = 1.0;
    gbc.weighty = 0.0;
    int midInset = (x == 2) ? 40 : 5;
    gbc.insets = new Insets(5, midInset, 5, 5);
    gbc.anchor = align;
    gbc.fill = GridBagConstraints.HORIZONTAL;
    p.add(component, gbc);
  }
 
  private static void createAndShowGUI() {
    final RecordModify recMod = new RecordModify();
    recMod.getDataAddListener(new ActionListener() {
      public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent arg0) {
        for (RecFieldNames recFNames : RecFieldNames.values()) {
          String fName = recFNames.getName();
          String text = recMod.getFieldText(recFNames);
          System.out.printf("%22s %-10s%n", fName, text);
        }
      }
    });
   
    JFrame frame = new JFrame("Record Modify");
    frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
    frame.getContentPane().add(recMod.getMainPanel());
    frame.pack();
    frame.setLocationRelativeTo(null);
    frame.setVisible(true);
  }

  public static void main(String[] args) {
    javax.swing.SwingUtilities.invokeLater(new Runnable() {
      public void run() {
        createAndShowGUI();
      }
    });

  }
}

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I JUST PLAYED A BIT WITH UR PIECE OF CODE .
1>set size of textfield not more than 10 > coz frame size is small .increase both if u want .
2> i played with co-ordinates of ur addItem METHOD of gridBagLayout and for these size and placement of labels and textfields u need to increase a bit frame size .. .. everything is cool now .. ur correct code is below .. copy it .n compile..
goes here--------


import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;

public class recMod {

JTextField [] recData = new JTextField[8];
JButton [] recButtons = new JButton[3];

public recMod() {

JLabel [] recLabel = new JLabel[8];
JFrame frame = new JFrame("Record Modify");
JPanel panel = new JPanel();

panel.setLayout(new GridBagLayout());

recLabel[0] = new JLabel("First Name:");
recData[0] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[0], 0, 0, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
addItem(panel, recData[0], 2, 0, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);


recLabel[1] = new JLabel("Last Name:");
recData[1] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[1], 4, 0, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
addItem(panel, recData[1], 6, 0, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);


recLabel[2] = new JLabel("Vendor:");
recData[2] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[2], 0, 2, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
addItem(panel, recData[2], 2, 2, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);


recLabel[3] = new JLabel("Vendor Location Code:");
recData[3] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[3], 4, 2, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
addItem(panel, recData[3], 6, 2, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);


recLabel[4] = new JLabel("User Email Address:");
recData[4] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[4], 0, 4, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
addItem(panel, recData[4], 2, 4, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);


recLabel[5] = new JLabel("Username:");
recData[5] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[5], 0, 6, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
addItem(panel, recData[5], 2, 6, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);


recLabel[6] = new JLabel("Password:");
recData[6] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[6], 4, 6, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.CENTER);
addItem(panel, recData[6], 6, 6, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);


recLabel[7] = new JLabel("user code:");
recData[7] = new JTextField(10);
addItem(panel, recLabel[7], 0, 8, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);
addItem(panel, recData[7], 2, 8, 2, 1, GridBagConstraints.WEST);


frame.add(panel);
frame.setVisible(true);
frame.setSize(600,500);
frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOS E);

}

private void addItem(JPanel p, JComponent c, int x, int y,
int width, int height, int align) {

GridBagConstraints gbc = new GridBagConstraints();

gbc.gridx = x;
gbc.gridy = y;
gbc.gridwidth = width;
gbc.gridheight = height;
gbc.weightx = 0.0;
gbc.weighty = 0.0;
gbc.insets = new Insets(5,5,5,5);
gbc.anchor = align;
gbc.fill = GridBagConstraints.HORIZONTAL;
p.add(c, gbc);

}

public static void main(String args[]) {

new recMod();

}
}

Do the textfields have to be a uniform size when using gridbag? Originally, I was going to try and set the textfields to sizes based on the data coming in/out.

In gridbag layout all components like button, textfield occupies a particular cell .. depending upon the co-ordinates we give .. so expanding it at the time of using is a bit of complexity .. i guess ..

anyways the textfiled can accomodate enough amount of text inside it irrespective of its visible size ..
So i think this can get ur work done ..

from a function standpoint it wouldn't really matter, that is true. I ask more from a asthetics point of view. Some of the entries, like the location code and user type, are only 3-6 characters long, so it doesn't really make sense to give them really big textfield. I guess i'll play around with it and see what I can do.

Have you read any of my posts above?

okay .. actually i took u in a wrong way , u asked like u want textfields of different size ...
and i thot tht u want to increase or decrease the size of fields automatically at the time of enetering data into it .. "this was not the case" ...

u can definately have different textfileds of different sizes " small ones 4 ur location code ans all tht"

our MODERATER "Fuberable" posted above those codes .. so take it and compile it .. yo ...

Fubarable, once again your posts helped me. Had trouble with textfield not being big enougth. added pack() voila. worked.