ActionListener issue.

[kbro3]

Hi all,

Having some issues with ActionListener in Swing, I have added an actionListener to a button, and it works as expected, but if I try to change any variables, I get a "local variable is accessed from within inner class, needs to be declared Final".

Any ideas? If I want my button to, for instance, decrement an int variable, everytime it's pressed, the int can't possibly be declared as final.

Here's a snippet of my code:

int currentHealth = 100;

        JPanel mainPanel = new JPanel();

        final JLabel label1 = new JLabel(Integer.toString(currentHealth));


        JButton okButton = new JButton("OK");
        JButton cancelButton = new JButton("CANCEL");
        JButton exitButton = new JButton("Exit");



        JFrame mainFrame = new JFrame("Application");
        mainFrame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);



        //OK Button event
        ActionListener al = new ActionListener() {
            public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae){

                currentHealth = CurrentHealth--; //ERROR HERE
                
                System.out.println("Button Pressed");


            }

        };

Thanks!

[al_Marshy_1981]

I cant replicate this error, can you post compilable code that shows it?

[Junky]

From the JLS:
Any local variable, formal method parameter or exception handler parameter used but not declared in an inner class must be declared final.

It doesn't explain why. It may in another section.

[al_Marshy_1981]

From the JLS:
Any local variable, formal method parameter or exception handler parameter used but not declared in an inner class must be declared final.

It doesn't explain why. It may in another section.

The inner class holds only a copy of the local variable so if the variable changes in the local class the inner class variable might be out of synch (bad things). I cannot replicate it though for some reason :confused:

[kbro3]

The entire code:

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

/**
 *
 * @author kirill
 */
public class Main {



   

    public static void main(String[] args)
    {

        int currentHealth = 100;

        JPanel mainPanel = new JPanel();

        final JLabel label1 = new JLabel(Integer.toString(currentHealth));


        JButton okButton = new JButton("OK");
        JButton cancelButton = new JButton("CANCEL");
        JButton exitButton = new JButton("Exit");



        JFrame mainFrame = new JFrame("Application");
        mainFrame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);



        //OK Button event
        ActionListener al = new ActionListener() {
            public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae){

                currentHealth = CurrentHealth--; //Won't allow this
                
                System.out.println("Button Pressed");


            }

        };


        //Cancel Button event
        ActionListener ac = new ActionListener(){
            public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae){


            }



        };


        //Register actionlistener with ok button
        okButton.addActionListener(al);
        cancelButton.addActionListener(ac);


        mainPanel.add(okButton, BorderLayout.CENTER);
        mainPanel.add(label1, BorderLayout.NORTH);
        mainFrame.add(mainPanel);

        mainFrame.pack();
        mainFrame.setVisible(true);
        
        
        


        
        


        
    }

    
}

Basically, I can only reference final variables from within the ActionListener. But if I want to modify them in the listener, obviously they can't be final, so that's the dilemma here..

Thanks.

[Junky]

the inner class might be out of synch

Yeah that was what I was thinking but wasn't 100% sure.

[kbro3]

Yeah that was what I was thinking but wasn't 100% sure.

Elaborate please?

Thanks.

[Junky]

So don't make the variable you are trying to change local.

Yikes!

Don't stuff all your code in the main method. Java is OO and has classes for a reason.

[kbro3]

So don't make the variable you are trying to change local.

Yikes!

Don't stuff all your code in the main method. Java is OO and has classes for a reason.

Haha, yeah I know it's not exactly elegant, but I'm just testing ActionListeners out, hence why didn't spend time on proper OO.

Thanks.

[Junky]

Well it won't take much to change. Move all the code you have so far into a constructor. Except the local variable you are trying to modify. Make it an instance variable instead. Then change your main method to:

new Main();

[kbro3]

Well it won't take much to change. Move all the code you have so far into a constructor. Except the local variable you are trying to modify. Make it an instance variable instead. Then change your main method to:

new Main();

So as a class, I can modify instance variables with ActionListener? That means i'll have to instantiate the class and then modify the instance variable through a setter which in turn gets called by ActionListener?

Sorry if I'm going over very basic concepts.

Thanks.

[Junky]

So as a class, I can modify instance variables with an inner class?

Just to be clear.

That means i'll have to instantiate the class

Yes that is what the main method is doing.

and then modify the instance variable through a setter which in turn gets called by ActionListener?

If the variable is an instance variable the inner class has direct access to it. No need for a setter method.

By the way

currentHealth = currentHealth--;

this does not work. Try the following:

int a = 1;
a = a++;
System.out.println(a);
int b = 1;
b = ++b;
System.out.println(b);

Same goes for decrementing.

[kbro3]

Just to be clear.

Yes that is what the main method is doing.

If the variable is an instance variable the inner class has direct access to it. No need for a setter method.

By the way

currentHealth = currentHealth--;

this does not work. Try the following:

int a = 1;
a = a++;
System.out.println(a);
int b = 1;
b = ++b;
System.out.println(b);

Same goes for decrementing.

Cheers for the reply. I'll have a dig around with it some more, no doubt I'll be back asking more questions.

Btw, thanks for the increment/decrement thing too, I don't usually bother with shorthand, now I remember why :)

Thanks.

[Junky]

Just to clarify increment/decrement. When you want to use them don't assign them back to the variable. simply do:

int a = 10;
a--;
--a;
int b = 10;
b++;
++b;

[kbro3]

Just to clarify increment/decrement. When you want to use them don't assign them back to the variable. simply do:

int a = 10;
a--;
--a;
int b = 10;
b++;
++b;

Ah right, I didn't catch that earlier, thanks for the clarification. :)