Swing Hacks

192

|

Chapter 5, Windows, Dialogs, and Frames

#36 Add Status Bars to Windows

HACK

layoutCoordinateX++;

contentPanel.add(

component,

new CellConstraints(layoutCoordinateX, layoutCoordinateY)

);

}

Notice that the size is passed into this method in dialog units

rather than pixels. You could easily change this to pixels if

you want, but I find dialog units to be a much easier way to

layout this kind of component.

Running the Hack

Example 5-3 is the code for a complete simulation frame. You just need to

create the

JStatusBar and add the left, main, and right components. All of

the layout and painting logic is encapsulated completely in

JStatusBar. The

bold lines in the middle of the

StatusBarSimulator are where the status bar is

created and the three components are added. Also, notice that all of the

labels are center aligned—this mimics the standard Windows practice. You

can see the finished product in Figure 5-8.

Figure 5-8. The status bar from StatusBarSimulator

Example 5-3. Using the JStatusBar in a JFrame

public class StatusBarSimulator {

public static void main(String[] args) {

try {

UIManager.setLookAndFeel(new WindowsLookAndFeel( ));

} catch (Exception e){

}

JFrame frame = new JFrame( );

frame.setBounds(200,200, 600, 200);

frame.setTitle("Status bar simulator");

Container contentPane = frame.getContentPane( );

contentPane.setLayout(new BorderLayout( ));

JStatusBar statusBar = new JStatusBar( );

JLabel leftLabel =

new JLabel("Your application is about to self destruct.");

statusBar.setMainLeftComponent(leftLabel);