Java Swing, 2nd Edition

The JTextField Class

JTextField allows the user to enter a single line of text, scrolling the text if its size exceeds the physical size of the field. A JTextField fires an ActionEvent to any registered ActionListeners (including the Action set via the setAction( ) method, if any) when the user presses the Enter key.

JTextFields (and all JTextComponents) are automatically installed with a number of behaviors appropriate to the L&F, so cut/copy/paste, special cursor movement keys, and text-selection gestures should work without any extra intervention on your part.

The following program presents a JTextField for the user to edit (shown in Figure 19-3). The JTextField is initially right-justified, but the justification changes each time the Enter key is pressed.

// JTextFieldExample.java // import javax.swing.*; import java.awt.event.*; public class JTextFieldExample { public static void main(String[] args) { final JTextField tf = new JTextField("press <enter>", 20); tf.setHorizontalAlignment(JTextField.RIGHT); tf.addActionListener(new ActionListener( ) { public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent e) { int old = tf.getHorizontalAlignment( ); if (old == JTextField.LEFT) tf.setHorizontalAlignment(JTextField.RIGHT); if (old == JTextField.RIGHT) tf.setHorizontalAlignment(JTextField.CENTER); if (old == JTextField.CENTER) tf.setHorizontalAlignment(JTextField.LEFT); } }); JFrame frame = new JFrame("JTextFieldExample"); frame.setDefaultCloseOperation(JFrame.EXIT_ON_CLOSE); frame.getContentPane( ...