How to Use Combo Boxes in Java?

[MarceloQuad]

Hi everyone,
I am beginner for the Java programming language. I have made a small coding for the form on Java. But in that I want to add the combo box in that.!! I don't know the coding for that.!! In that combo box i want to add the name of animals so the user can click the animal that he wants. So please help me to explain how to Use Combo Boxes in Java.?? Waiting for your Responses..!!

[CodGuru]

A Combo Boxes in Java are used when there is list of variables, and you want the user to select from that list. I think that you want the combo box so that the user can select the animal from that box instead of mentioning by its own. By using the Combo Box, you can tie the users with the boundaries. A JComboBox, which lets the user choose one of several choices, can have two very different forms. The first is default form, in which features a button and a drop-down list of values. This is also called as uneditable combo box, because you cannot edit from that. And the second type is called the editable combo box, features a text field with a small button abutting it.

[void]

I think that you will get some idea from the following sample of example in which I have coded combo box for some animals. Have a look at the code :

String[] petStrings = { "Dog", "Rabbit", "Parrot", "Cat", "Hen", "Pigeon" };

JComboBox petList = new JComboBox(petStrings);
petList.setSelectedIndex(5);
petList.addActionListener(this);

[Allan.d]

Before making the combo boxes you should know something that is very important. When implementing a custom model for a combo box, you should not forget that JComboBox methods work only if the data model implements the MutableComboBoxModel interface. This happens only when you are using the JComboBox for changing the items in the combo box's menu, just like insertItemAt. Also while using the uneditable combo boxes, you will have to make sure that custom model fires list data events when the combo box's data or state changes. Whenever the selection changes, immutable combo box models, whose data never changes, must fire a list data event.

[Reegan]

You will also have to handle an events on a Combo Box. so I have given you a coding that demonstrates the same :

public class ComboBoxDemo ... implements ActionListener {
    . . .
        petList.addActionListener(this) {
    . . .
    public void actionPerformed(ActionEvent ae) {
        JComboBox combo = (JComboBox)ae.getSource();
        String petName = (String)combo.getSelectedItem();
        updateLabel(petName);
    }
    . . .
}

[kelfro]

If you want the code for the editable combo box, you can paste the following code :

String[] patternExamples = {
         "dd MMMMM yyyy",
         "dd.MM.yy",
         "MM/dd/yy",
         "yyyy.MM.dd G 'at' hh:mm:ss z",
         "EEE, MMM d, ''yy",
         "h:mm a",
         "H:mm:ss:SSS",
         "K:mm a,z",
         "yyyy.MMMMM.dd GGG hh:mm aaa"
};
. . .
JComboBox patternList = new JComboBox(patternExamples);
patternList.setEditable(true);
patternList.addActionListener(this);