Java Examples in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition

Look-and-Feel Preferences

A number of the examples in this chapter have used the utility class LookAndFeelPrefs to install the user’s preferred look-and-feel and create a JMenu listing available look-and-feel choices. LookAndFeelPrefs is shown in Example 11-29. It demonstrates the use of the javax.swing.UIManager class for querying and setting look-and-feels, and also demonstrates the use of the java.util.prefs package (new in Java 1.4) for retrieving and storing persistent user preferences.

LookAndFeelPrefs relies on the list of installed look-and-feel implementations returned by UIManager.getInstalledLookAndFeels( ). By default (in Java 1.4.2, at least) this method returns three look-and-feels: the Java “Metal” look-and-feel, the Motif (CDE) look-and-feel, and the Windows look-and-feel. This is true even on non-Windows platforms for which the Windows look-and-feel is unsupported. Java 1.4.2 also ships with a GTK look-and-feel, which mimics the Linux GTK look-and-feel, but getInstalledLookAndFeels( ) does not know about it. To make this new look-and-feel available to the LookAndFeelPrefs example, you’ll need to create a swing.properties file and place it in the jre/lib/ directory of your Java SDK. The contents of the file should look like this:

# Add the Mac look-and-feel if your SDK comes with it. # Delete the Windows look-and-feel if it is not supported on your platform. swing.installedlafs = gtk,metal,motif,win swing.installedlaf.gtk.name = GTK Look and Feel, swing.installedlaf.gtk.class ...