SWING - BorderLayout Class



Introduction

The class BorderLayout arranges the components to fit in the five regions: east, west, north, south, and center. Each region can contain only one component and each component in each region is identified by the corresponding constant NORTH, SOUTH, EAST, WEST, and CENTER.

Class Declaration

Following is the declaration for java.awt.BorderLayout class −

public class BorderLayout
   extends Object
      implements LayoutManager2, Serializable

Field

Following are the fields for java.awt.BorderLayout class −

  • static String AFTER_LAST_LINE − Synonym for PAGE_END.

  • static String AFTER_LINE_ENDS − Synonym for LINE_END.

  • static String BEFORE_FIRST_LINE − Synonym for PAGE_START.

  • static String BEFORE_LINE_BEGINS − Synonym for LINE_START.

  • static String CENTER − The center layout constraint (middle of the container).

  • static String EAST − The east layout constraint (right side of the container).

  • static String LINE_END − The component goes at the end of the line direction for the layout.

  • static String LINE_START − The component goes at the beginning of the line direction for the layout.

  • static String NORTH − The north layout constraint (top of the container).

  • static String PAGE_END − The component comes after the last line of the layout's content.

  • static String PAGE_START − The component comes before the first line of the layout's content.

  • static String SOUTH − The south layout constraint (bottom of the container).

  • static String WEST − The west layout constraint (left side of the container).

Class Constructors

Sr.No. Constructor & Description
1

BorderLayout()

Constructs a new border layout with no gaps between the components.

2

BorderLayout(int hgap, int vgap)

Constructs a border layout with the specified gaps between the components.

Class Methods

Sr.No. Method & Description
1

void addLayoutComponent(Component comp, Object constraints)

Adds the specified component to the layout, using the specified constraint object.

2

void addLayoutComponent(String name, Component comp)

If the layout manager uses a per-component string, adds the component comp to the layout, associating it with the string specified by name.

3

int getHgap()

Returns the horizontal gap between the components.

4

float getLayoutAlignmentX(Container parent)

Returns the alignment along the x axis.

5

float getLayoutAlignmentY(Container parent)

Returns the alignment along the y axis.

6

int getVgap()

Returns the vertical gap between the components.

7

void invalidateLayout(Container target)

Invalidates the layout, indicating that if the layout manager has cached information it should be discarded.

8

void layoutContainer(Container target)

Lays out the container argument using this border layout.

9

Dimension maximumLayoutSize(Container target)

Returns the maximum dimensions for this layout given the components in the specified target container.

10

Dimension minimumLayoutSize(Container target)

Determines the minimum size of the target container using this layout manager.

11

Dimension preferredLayoutSize(Container target)

Determines the preferred size of the target container using this layout manager, based on the components in the container.

12

void removeLayoutComponent(Component comp)

Removes the specified component from this border layout.

13

void setHgap(int hgap)

Sets the horizontal gap between the components.

14

void setVgap(int vgap)

Sets the vertical gap between the components.

15

String toString()

Returns a string representation of the state of this border layout.

Methods Inherited

This class inherits methods from the following class −

  • java.lang.Object

BorderLayout Example

Create the following Java program using any editor of your choice in say D:/ > SWING > com > tutorialspoint > gui >

SwingLayoutDemo.java

package com.tutorialspoint.gui;

import java.awt.*;
import java.awt.event.*;
import javax.swing.*;

public class SwingLayoutDemo {
   private JFrame mainFrame;
   private JLabel headerLabel;
   private JLabel statusLabel;
   private JPanel controlPanel;
   private JLabel msglabel;

   public SwingLayoutDemo(){
      prepareGUI();
   }
   public static void main(String[] args){
      SwingLayoutDemo swingLayoutDemo = new SwingLayoutDemo();  
      swingLayoutDemo.showBorderLayoutDemo();       
   }
   private void prepareGUI(){
      mainFrame = new JFrame("Java SWING Examples");
      mainFrame.setSize(400,400);
      mainFrame.setLayout(new GridLayout(3, 1));

      headerLabel = new JLabel("",JLabel.CENTER );
      statusLabel = new JLabel("",JLabel.CENTER);        
      statusLabel.setSize(350,100);
      
      mainFrame.addWindowListener(new WindowAdapter() {
         public void windowClosing(WindowEvent windowEvent){
            System.exit(0);
         }        
      });    
      controlPanel = new JPanel();
      controlPanel.setLayout(new FlowLayout());

      mainFrame.add(headerLabel);
      mainFrame.add(controlPanel);
      mainFrame.add(statusLabel);
      mainFrame.setVisible(true);  
   }
   private void showBorderLayoutDemo(){
      headerLabel.setText("Layout in action: BorderLayout");      

      JPanel panel = new JPanel();
      panel.setBackground(Color.darkGray);
      panel.setSize(300,300);
      BorderLayout layout = new BorderLayout();
      layout.setHgap(10);
      layout.setVgap(10);
      
      panel.setLayout(layout);        
      panel.add(new JButton("Center"),BorderLayout.CENTER);
      panel.add(new JButton("Line Start"),BorderLayout.LINE_START); 
      panel.add(new JButton("Line End"),BorderLayout.LINE_END);
      panel.add(new JButton("East"),BorderLayout.EAST);   
      panel.add(new JButton("West"),BorderLayout.WEST); 
      panel.add(new JButton("North"),BorderLayout.NORTH); 
      panel.add(new JButton("South"),BorderLayout.SOUTH); 

      controlPanel.add(panel);
      mainFrame.setVisible(true);  
   }
}

Compile the program using the command prompt. Go to D:/ > SWING and type the following command.

D:\SWING>javac com\tutorialspoint\gui\SwingLayoutDemo.java

If no error occurs, it means the compilation is successful. Run the program using the following command.

D:\SWING>java com.tutorialspoint.gui.SwingLayoutDemo

Verify the following output.

SWING BorderLayout
swing_layouts.htm
Advertisements