Making this JLabel Appear

[BradR]

My friends and are are trying to program a smaller version of the pokemon safari zone. I'm attempting to output a small, 7x6 image of a grassy area, but this isn't outputting an image, can someone please tell me what I am doing wrong?

import javax.swing.*;
import java.awt.*;
import java.util.*;
/**
 *Grid Component
 */
public class Grid extends JFrame
{
    private JLabel mapLabel;
    public Grid()
    {
        super("Safari Zone");
        setSize(300,300);
        setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE);
        JPanel imagePanel = new JPanel();
        add(imagePanel);
        ImageIcon zone = new ImageIcon("C:\\Documents and Settings\\Bradley\\My Documents\\BradleyWork2010\\AP Java\\ClassWork\\Final\\Map.jpeg");
        mapLabel = new JLabel(zone);
        imagePanel.add(mapLabel);
        setVisible(true);

    }
}

[camickr]

I would guess the image isn't found.

Also make sure you create the GUI on the Event Dispatch Thread. See: Lesson: Concurrency in Swing (The Java™ Tutorials > Creating a GUI With JFC/Swing)

[littledrummerboy]

maybe try using .validate() or .repaint() on the JLabel?

[DarrylBurke]

maybe try using .validate() or .repaint() on the JLabel?

Not required. Irrelevant.

db

[FlyNn]

After the setVisible(true) line add:

imagePanel.repaint();
imagePanel.updateUI();

[pbrockway2]

Why not imagePanel.validate() as well? It can't do any harm. The OP could also consider sacrificing a small goat.

Or he or she could consider whether or not the image as specified was found. And create the GUI on the Event Dispatch Thread. This involves putting some faith in what camickr says about things Swing: but it's a sure winner for the goats.

[Fubarable]

After the setVisible(true) line add:

imagePanel.repaint();
imagePanel.updateUI();

Just to be clear, this will not help at all, and you don't call updateUI with Swing. Please re-read with camickr, Darryl and more recently pbrockway have posted.

[littledrummerboy]

Not required. Irrelevant.

db

how come it's irrelevant? i recently did a project where I had to work with tons of jlabels and jpanels and i often found when they weren't showing up it was because I needed to update them with one of those methods so I thought maybe that'd help him too.

[camickr]

how come it's irrelevant?

Because this is the initial display of the GUI and you don't need to do anything like that.

repaint() is when you've changed a property of a visible component.

updateUI() is when you change the LAF of a visible component. You should never use this method. See How to Set the Look and Feel (The Java™ Tutorials > Creating a GUI With JFC/Swing > Modifying the Look and Feel) for the proper way to change the LAF on a visible GUI.

i often found when they weren't showing up it was because I needed to update them with one of those methods so I thought maybe that'd help him too.

Its a brute force solution that some people use because they don't understand how Swing works and should NOT be used or recommended. The proper way to tell Swing that components have been added is to use:

panel.add(...);
panel.revalidate();
panel.repaint();

[BradR]

I changed the image from JPEG to PNG and it worked, just wondering why this happened

[littledrummerboy]

Its a brute force solution that some people use because they don't understand how Swing works and should NOT be used or recommended. The proper way to tell Swing that components have been added is to use:

Thank you, but could you explain why it should not be used? It's true I don't understand swing very well, so since it fixed my problems i was unaware that it wasn't the best option.

[Fubarable]

I changed the image from JPEG to PNG and it worked, just wondering why this happened

Perhaps because the file is a PNG file and not a JPG?

[Fubarable]

Thank you, but could you explain why it should not be used? It's true I don't understand swing very well, so since it fixed my problems i was unaware that it wasn't the best option.

I thought camickr already explained this. What about his explanation do you not understand?

Some additional thoughts:

maybe try using .validate() or .repaint() on the JLabel?

Here you're advocating calling validate or repaint on the label. Since the label isn't acting as a container, validate makes no sense, and since if you set it's text or image it will display it automatically, repaint is completely unnecessary.

how come it's irrelevant? i recently did a project where I had to work with tons of jlabels and jpanels and i often found when they weren't showing up it was because I needed to update them with one of those methods so I thought maybe that'd help him too.

Then you had a bug in that code that you don't yet understand (and neither do we as we don't have access to your code).

And since you admittedly don't understand Swing which is pretty darn complex, perhaps you might want to study up on Swing before giving advice so that your understand and advice are both a bit better. The Swing tutorials are a good place to start and the source code would be the next place to have a look.

[littledrummerboy]

well he just said why it shouldn't be used in this case but he seemed very adament about not using it at all and so i was just wondering why that was

And since you admittedly don't understand Swing which is pretty darn complex, perhaps you might want to study up on Swing before giving advice so that your understand and advice are both a bit better. The Swing tutorials are a good place to start and the source code would be the next place to have a look.

I'm sorry, i was just trying to give some advice since I knew that helped me, didn't realize it would do any harm
i'll definitely start reading up on swing though, thank you!