How to modify/add code to the initComponents() method in Java using NetBeans?

Question

How to modify/add code to the initComponents() method in Java on NetBeans? When I try to add any line of code this area seems to be like readonly and it's highlighted in gray! It's for security probably, but I suppose there is a way to disable that.

Answer 1

Yes the initComponents method is read only to keep full control for the IDE. You may add yours in the constructor right after initComponents.

public class NewJFrame extends javax.swing.JFrame {  /** Creates new form NewJFrame */ public NewJFrame() {     initComponents();     myInitComponents(); }  public void myInitComponents() { } 

Answer 2

The initComponents() method is regenerated by the IDE as you create your UI in the GUI editor. The method is 'guarded' to prevent this regeneration from overwriting user written code.

There are a couple of ways to add code to this method, indirectly:

1. Drop a new component onto the design editor 'canvas' for the window.

2. Enter code as part of one of the following code properties: Pre-Creation Code, Post-Creation Code, Pre-Init Code, Post-Init Code, Post-Listener Code, Pre-Population Code, Post-Population Code and After-All-Set Code.

   There are a couple other code properties that do not alter the initComponents() method... but can be very useful: Pre-Declaration Code and Post-Declaration Code. alt text http://blogs.sun.com/vkraemer/resource/code-properties.png Note: the editor for these properties is not 'rich', so I would recommend creating methods in the "regular editor" that you just call in the initComponents().

You can modify the code in the initComponents() method by positioning or changing the 'regular' properties of the 'base panel' or controls.