public class

JFormattedTextField

extends JTextField
java.lang.Object
   ↳ java.awt.Component
     ↳ java.awt.Container
       ↳ javax.swing.JComponent
         ↳ javax.swing.text.JTextComponent
           ↳ javax.swing.JTextField
             ↳ javax.swing.JFormattedTextField

Class Overview

JFormattedTextField extends JTextField adding support for formatting arbitrary values, as well as retrieving a particular object once the user has edited the text. The following illustrates configuring a JFormattedTextField to edit dates:

   JFormattedTextField ftf = new JFormattedTextField();
   ftf.setValue(new Date());
 

Once a JFormattedTextField has been created, you can listen for editing changes by way of adding a PropertyChangeListener and listening for PropertyChangeEvents with the property name value.

JFormattedTextField allows configuring what action should be taken when focus is lost. The possible configurations are:

Value

Description

JFormattedTextField.REVERT Revert the display to match that of getValue, possibly losing the current edit.
JFormattedTextField.COMMIT Commits the current value. If the value being edited isn't considered a legal value by the AbstractFormatter that is, a ParseException is thrown, then the value will not change, and then edited value will persist.
JFormattedTextField.COMMIT_OR_REVERT Similar to COMMIT, but if the value isn't legal, behave like REVERT.
JFormattedTextField.PERSIST Do nothing, don't obtain a new AbstractFormatter, and don't update the value.
The default is JFormattedTextField.COMMIT_OR_REVERT, refer to setFocusLostBehavior(int) for more information on this.

JFormattedTextField allows the focus to leave, even if the currently edited value is invalid. To lock the focus down while the JFormattedTextField is an invalid edit state you can attach an InputVerifier. The following code snippet shows a potential implementation of such an InputVerifier:

 public class FormattedTextFieldVerifier extends InputVerifier {
     public boolean verify(JComponent input) {
         if (input instanceof JFormattedTextField) {
             JFormattedTextField ftf = (JFormattedTextField)input;
             AbstractFormatter formatter = ftf.getFormatter();
             if (formatter != null) {
                 String text = ftf.getText();
                 try {
                      formatter.stringToValue(text);
                      return true;
                  } catch (ParseException pe) {
                      return false;
                  }
              }
          }
          return true;
      }
      public boolean shouldYieldFocus(JComponent input) {
          return verify(input);
      }
  }
 

Alternatively, you could invoke commitEdit, which would also commit the value.

JFormattedTextField does not do the formatting it self, rather formatting is done through an instance of JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter which is obtained from an instance of JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory. Instances of JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter are notified when they become active by way of the install method, at which point the JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter can install whatever it needs to, typically a DocumentFilter. Similarly when JFormattedTextField no longer needs the AbstractFormatter, it will invoke uninstall.

JFormattedTextField typically queries the AbstractFormatterFactory for an AbstractFormat when it gains or loses focus. Although this can change based on the focus lost policy. If the focus lost policy is JFormattedTextField.PERSIST and the JFormattedTextField has been edited, the AbstractFormatterFactory will not be queried until the value has been commited. Similarly if the focus lost policy is JFormattedTextField.COMMIT and an exception is thrown from stringToValue, the AbstractFormatterFactory will not be querired when focus is lost or gained.

JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter is also responsible for determining when values are commited to the JFormattedTextField. Some JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatters will make new values available on every edit, and others will never commit the value. You can force the current value to be obtained from the current JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter by way of invoking commitEdit. commitEdit will be invoked whenever return is pressed in the JFormattedTextField.

If an AbstractFormatterFactory has not been explicitly set, one will be set based on the Class of the value type after setValue has been invoked (assuming value is non-null). For example, in the following code an appropriate AbstractFormatterFactory and AbstractFormatter will be created to handle formatting of numbers:

   JFormattedTextField tf = new JFormattedTextField();
   tf.setValue(new Number(100));
 

Warning: As the AbstractFormatter will typically install a DocumentFilter on the Document, and a NavigationFilter on the JFormattedTextField you should not install your own. If you do, you are likely to see odd behavior in that the editing policy of the AbstractFormatter will not be enforced.

Warning: Swing is not thread safe. For more information see Swing's Threading Policy.

Warning: Serialized objects of this class will not be compatible with future Swing releases. The current serialization support is appropriate for short term storage or RMI between applications running the same version of Swing. As of 1.4, support for long term storage of all JavaBeansTM has been added to the java.beans package. Please see XMLEncoder.

Summary

Nested Classes
class JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter Instances of AbstractFormatter are used by JFormattedTextField to handle the conversion both from an Object to a String, and back from a String to an Object. 
class JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory Instances of AbstractFormatterFactory are used by JFormattedTextField to obtain instances of AbstractFormatter which in turn are used to format values. 
Constants
int COMMIT Constant identifying that when focus is lost, commitEdit should be invoked.
int COMMIT_OR_REVERT Constant identifying that when focus is lost, commitEdit should be invoked.
int PERSIST Constant identifying that when focus is lost, the edited value should be left.
int REVERT Constant identifying that when focus is lost, editing value should be reverted to current value set on the JFormattedTextField.
[Expand]
Inherited Constants
From class javax.swing.JTextField
From class javax.swing.text.JTextComponent
From class javax.swing.JComponent
From class java.awt.Component
From interface java.awt.image.ImageObserver
From interface javax.swing.SwingConstants
[Expand]
Inherited Fields
From class javax.swing.JComponent
Public Constructors
JFormattedTextField()
Creates a JFormattedTextField with no AbstractFormatterFactory.
JFormattedTextField(Object value)
Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified value.
JFormattedTextField(Format format)
Creates a JFormattedTextField.
JFormattedTextField(JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter formatter)
Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified AbstractFormatter.
JFormattedTextField(JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory factory)
Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified AbstractFormatterFactory.
JFormattedTextField(JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory factory, Object currentValue)
Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified AbstractFormatterFactory and initial value.
Public Methods
void commitEdit()
Forces the current value to be taken from the AbstractFormatter and set as the current value.
Action[] getActions()
Fetches the command list for the editor.
int getFocusLostBehavior()
Returns the behavior when focus is lost.
JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter getFormatter()
Returns the AbstractFormatter that is used to format and parse the current value.
JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory getFormatterFactory()
Returns the current AbstractFormatterFactory.
String getUIClassID()
Gets the class ID for a UI.
Object getValue()
Returns the last valid value.
boolean isEditValid()
Returns true if the current value being edited is valid.
void setDocument(Document doc)
Associates the editor with a text document.
void setFocusLostBehavior(int behavior)
Sets the behavior when focus is lost.
void setFormatterFactory(JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory tf)
Sets the AbstractFormatterFactory.
void setValue(Object value)
Sets the value that will be formatted by an AbstractFormatter obtained from the current AbstractFormatterFactory.
Protected Methods
void invalidEdit()
Invoked when the user inputs an invalid value.
void processFocusEvent(FocusEvent e)
Processes any focus events, such as FocusEvent.FOCUS_GAINED or FocusEvent.FOCUS_LOST.
void processInputMethodEvent(InputMethodEvent e)
Processes any input method events, such as InputMethodEvent.INPUT_METHOD_TEXT_CHANGED or InputMethodEvent.CARET_POSITION_CHANGED.
void setFormatter(JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter format)
Sets the current AbstractFormatter.
[Expand]
Inherited Methods
From class javax.swing.JTextField
From class javax.swing.text.JTextComponent
From class javax.swing.JComponent
From class java.awt.Container
From class java.awt.Component
From class java.lang.Object
From interface java.awt.MenuContainer
From interface java.awt.image.ImageObserver
From interface javax.accessibility.Accessible
From interface javax.swing.Scrollable

Constants

public static final int COMMIT

Constant identifying that when focus is lost, commitEdit should be invoked. If in commiting the new value a ParseException is thrown, the invalid value will remain.

Constant Value: 0 (0x00000000)

public static final int COMMIT_OR_REVERT

Constant identifying that when focus is lost, commitEdit should be invoked. If in commiting the new value a ParseException is thrown, the value will be reverted.

Constant Value: 1 (0x00000001)

public static final int PERSIST

Constant identifying that when focus is lost, the edited value should be left.

Constant Value: 3 (0x00000003)

public static final int REVERT

Constant identifying that when focus is lost, editing value should be reverted to current value set on the JFormattedTextField.

Constant Value: 2 (0x00000002)

Public Constructors

public JFormattedTextField ()

Creates a JFormattedTextField with no AbstractFormatterFactory. Use setMask or setFormatterFactory to configure the JFormattedTextField to edit a particular type of value.

public JFormattedTextField (Object value)

Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified value. This will create an AbstractFormatterFactory based on the type of value.

Parameters
value Initial value for the JFormattedTextField

public JFormattedTextField (Format format)

Creates a JFormattedTextField. format is wrapped in an appropriate AbstractFormatter which is then wrapped in an AbstractFormatterFactory.

Parameters
format Format used to look up an AbstractFormatter

public JFormattedTextField (JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter formatter)

Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified AbstractFormatter. The AbstractFormatter is placed in an AbstractFormatterFactory.

Parameters
formatter AbstractFormatter to use for formatting.

public JFormattedTextField (JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory factory)

Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified AbstractFormatterFactory.

Parameters
factory AbstractFormatterFactory used for formatting.

public JFormattedTextField (JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory factory, Object currentValue)

Creates a JFormattedTextField with the specified AbstractFormatterFactory and initial value.

Parameters
factory AbstractFormatterFactory used for formatting.
currentValue Initial value to use

Public Methods

public void commitEdit ()

Forces the current value to be taken from the AbstractFormatter and set as the current value. This has no effect if there is no current AbstractFormatter installed.

Throws
ParseException if the AbstractFormatter is not able to format the current value

public Action[] getActions ()

Fetches the command list for the editor. This is the list of commands supported by the plugged-in UI augmented by the collection of commands that the editor itself supports. These are useful for binding to events, such as in a keymap.

Returns
  • the command list

public int getFocusLostBehavior ()

Returns the behavior when focus is lost. This will be one of COMMIT_OR_REVERT, COMMIT, REVERT or PERSIST Note that some AbstractFormatters may push changes as they occur, so that the value of this will have no effect.

Returns
  • returns behavior when focus is lost

public JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter getFormatter ()

Returns the AbstractFormatter that is used to format and parse the current value.

Returns
  • AbstractFormatter used for formatting

public JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory getFormatterFactory ()

Returns the current AbstractFormatterFactory.

Returns
  • AbstractFormatterFactory used to determine AbstractFormatters

public String getUIClassID ()

Gets the class ID for a UI.

Returns
  • the string "FormattedTextFieldUI"
See Also

public Object getValue ()

Returns the last valid value. Based on the editing policy of the AbstractFormatter this may not return the current value. The currently edited value can be obtained by invoking commitEdit followed by getValue.

Returns
  • Last valid value

public boolean isEditValid ()

Returns true if the current value being edited is valid. The value of this is managed by the current AbstractFormatter, as such there is no public setter for it.

Returns
  • true if the current value being edited is valid.

public void setDocument (Document doc)

Associates the editor with a text document. The currently registered factory is used to build a view for the document, which gets displayed by the editor after revalidation. A PropertyChange event ("document") is propagated to each listener.

Parameters
doc the document to display/edit
See Also

public void setFocusLostBehavior (int behavior)

Sets the behavior when focus is lost. This will be one of JFormattedTextField.COMMIT_OR_REVERT, JFormattedTextField.REVERT, JFormattedTextField.COMMIT or JFormattedTextField.PERSIST Note that some AbstractFormatters may push changes as they occur, so that the value of this will have no effect.

This will throw an IllegalArgumentException if the object passed in is not one of the afore mentioned values.

The default value of this property is JFormattedTextField.COMMIT_OR_REVERT.

Parameters
behavior Identifies behavior when focus is lost
Throws
IllegalArgumentException if behavior is not one of the known values

public void setFormatterFactory (JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatterFactory tf)

Sets the AbstractFormatterFactory. AbstractFormatterFactory is able to return an instance of AbstractFormatter that is used to format a value for display, as well an enforcing an editing policy.

If you have not explicitly set an AbstractFormatterFactory by way of this method (or a constructor) an AbstractFormatterFactory and consequently an AbstractFormatter will be used based on the Class of the value. NumberFormatter will be used for Numbers, DateFormatter will be used for Dates, otherwise DefaultFormatter will be used.

This is a JavaBeans bound property.

Parameters
tf AbstractFormatterFactory used to lookup instances of AbstractFormatter

public void setValue (Object value)

Sets the value that will be formatted by an AbstractFormatter obtained from the current AbstractFormatterFactory. If no AbstractFormatterFactory has been specified, this will attempt to create one based on the type of value.

The default value of this property is null.

This is a JavaBeans bound property.

Parameters
value Current value to display

Protected Methods

protected void invalidEdit ()

Invoked when the user inputs an invalid value. This gives the component a chance to provide feedback. The default implementation beeps.

protected void processFocusEvent (FocusEvent e)

Processes any focus events, such as FocusEvent.FOCUS_GAINED or FocusEvent.FOCUS_LOST.

Parameters
e the FocusEvent
See Also

protected void processInputMethodEvent (InputMethodEvent e)

Processes any input method events, such as InputMethodEvent.INPUT_METHOD_TEXT_CHANGED or InputMethodEvent.CARET_POSITION_CHANGED.

Parameters
e the InputMethodEvent
See Also

protected void setFormatter (JFormattedTextField.AbstractFormatter format)

Sets the current AbstractFormatter.

You should not normally invoke this, instead set the AbstractFormatterFactory or set the value. JFormattedTextField will invoke this as the state of the JFormattedTextField changes and requires the value to be reset. JFormattedTextField passes in the AbstractFormatter obtained from the AbstractFormatterFactory.

This is a JavaBeans bound property.

Parameters
format AbstractFormatter to use for formatting