[Chapter 6] 6.7 FileDialog
Author: John Zukowski
Date: Thu Jul 31 14:37:10 1997

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| Chapter 6 Containers |

## 6.7 FileDialog

`FileDialog` is a subclass of `Dialog` that lets the user select files for opening or saving. You must load or save any files yourself. If used in an application or appletviewer, the `FileDialog` always looks like the local system's file dialog. The `FileDialog` is always a modal `Dialog`, meaning that the calling program is blocked from continuing (and cannot accept input) until the user responds to the `FileDialog`. Figure 6.9 shows the `FileDialog` component in Motif, Windows NT/95, and the Macintosh.

Unlike the other `Window` subclasses, there is no `LayoutManager` for `FileDialog`, since you are creating the environment's actual file dialog. This means you cannot subclass `FileDialog` to alter its behavior or appearance. However, the class is not "final."

> NOTE:

Netscape Navigator throws an `AWTError` when you try to create a `FileDialog` because Navigator does not permit local file system access.

### FileDialog Methods

Constants

A `FileDialog` has two modes: one for loading a file (input) and one for saving (output). The following variables provide the mode to the constructor. The `FileDialog` functions the same way in both modes. The only visible difference is whether a button on the screen is labeled Load or Save. You must load or save the requested file yourself. On certain platforms there may be functional differences: in `SAVE` mode, the `FileDialog` may ask if you want to replace a file if it already exists; in `LOAD` mode, the `FileDialog` may not accept a filename that does not exist.

public final static int LOAD

  `LOAD` is the constant for load mode. It is the default mode.

public final static int SAVE

  `SAVE` is the constant for save mode.

Constructors

public FileDialog (Frame parent)

  The first constructor creates a `FileDialog` for loading with a parent `Frame` of `parent`. The window title is initially empty.

public FileDialog (Frame parent, String title)

  This constructor creates a `FileDialog` for loading with a parent `Frame` of `parent`. The window title is `title`.

public FileDialog (Frame parent, String title, int mode)

  The final constructor creates a `FileDialog` with an initial mode of `mode`. If `mode` is neither `LOAD` nor `SAVE`, the `FileDialog` is in `SAVE` mode.

#### Figure 6.9: FileDialogs for Motif, Windows NT/95, and the Macintosh

Appearance methods

public String getDirectory ()

  `getDirectory()` returns the current directory for the `FileDialog`. Normally, you check this when `FileDialog` returns after a `show()` and a call to `getFile()` returns something other than `null`.

public void setDirectory (String directory)

  The `setDirectory()` method changes the initial directory displayed in the `FileDialog` to `directory`. You must call `setDirectory()` prior to displaying the `FileDialog`.

public String getFile ()

  The `getFile()` method returns the current file selection from the `FileDialog`. If the user pressed the Cancel button on the `FileDialog`, `getFile()` returns `null`. This is the only way to determine if the user pressed Cancel.

> NOTE:

On some platforms in Java 1.0 `getFile()` returns a string that ends in `.*.*` (two periods and two asterisks) if the file does not exist. You need to remove the extra characters before you can create the file.

public void setFile (String file)

  The `setFile()` method changes the default file for the `FileDialog` to `file`. Because the `FileDialog` is modal, this must be done before you call `show()`. The string may contain a filename filter like *.java to show a preliminary list of files to select. This has nothing to do with the use of the `FilenameFilter` class.

public FilenameFilter getFilenameFilter ()

  The `getFilenameFilter()` method returns the current `FilenameFilter`. The `FilenameFilter` class is part of the `java.io` package. `FilenameFilter` is an interface that allows you to restrict choices to certain directory and filename combinations. For example, it can be used to limit the user to selecting .jpg, .gif, and .xbm files. The class implementing `FilenameFilter` would not return other possibilities as choices.

public void setFilenameFilter (FilenameFilter filter)

  The `setFilenameFilter()` method changes the current filename filter to `filter`. This needs to be done before you `show()` the `FileDialog`.

> NOTE:

The JDK does not support the `FilenameFilter` with `FileDialog` boxes. `FilenameFilter` works but can't be used with `FileDialog`.

Miscellaneous methods

public int getMode ()

  The `getMode()` method returns the current mode of the `FileDialog`. If an invalid mode was used in the constructor, this method returns an invalid mode here. No error checking is performed.

public void setMode (int mode)

  The `setMode()` method changes the current mode of the `FileDialog` to `mode`. If `mode` is not one of the class constants `LOAD` or `SAVE`, `setMode()` throws the run-time exception `IllegalArgumentException`.

public synchronized void addNotify ()

  The `addNotify()` method creates the `FileDialog` peer. This is automatically done when you call the `show()` method of the `FileDialog`. If you override this method, first call `super.addNotify()`, then add your customizations for the new class. Then you can do everything you need with the information about the newly created peer.

protected String paramString ()

  When you call the `toString()` method of `FileDialog`, the default `toString()` method of `Component` is called. This in turn calls `paramString()`, which builds up the string to display. At the `FileDialog` level, `paramString()` appends the directory (if not `null`) and current mode to the return value. Using the constructor `FileDialog(top, `Load Me`)`, the results would be as follows:

    java.awt.FileDialog[0,0,0x0,invalid,hidden,modal,title=Load Me,load]

### A FileDialog Example

To get a better grasp of how the `FileDialog` works, the following application uses a `FileDialog` to select a file for display in a `TextArea`. You can also use `FileDialog` to save the file back to disk. Figure 6.10 shows the application, with a file displayed in the text area; the `FileDialog` itself looks like any other file dialog on the run-time system. Example 6.3 shows the code.

> CAUTION:

This example can overwrite an existing file.

#### Figure 6.10: FileDialog test program

#### Example 6.3: Complete FileDialog

    import java.awt.*;
    import java.io.*;
    public class FdTest extends Frame {
        TextArea myTextArea;
        Label myLabel;
        Button loadButton;
        Button saveButton;
        FdTest () {
            super ("File Dialog Tester");
            Panel p = new Panel ();
            p.add (loadButton = new Button ("Load"));
            p.add (saveButton = new Button ("Save"));
            add ("North", myLabel = new Label ());
            add ("South", p);
            add ("Center", myTextArea = new TextArea (10, 40));
            Menu m = new Menu ("File");
            m.add (new MenuItem ("Quit"));
            MenuBar mb = new MenuBar();
            mb.add (m);
            setMenuBar (mb);
            pack();
        }
        public static void main (String args[]) {
            FdTest f = new FdTest();
                f.show();
        }
        public boolean handleEvent (Event e) {
            if (e.id == Event.WINDOW_DESTROY) {
                hide();
                dispose ();
                System.exit(0);
                return true;  // never gets here
            }
            return super.handleEvent (e);
        }
        public boolean action (Event e, Object o) {
            if (e.target instanceof MenuItem) {
                hide();
                dispose ();
                System.exit(0);
                return true;  // never gets here
            } else if (e.target instanceof Button) {
                int state;
                String msg;
                if (e.target == loadButton) {
                    state = FileDialog.LOAD;
                    msg = "Load File";
                } else {// if (e.target == saveButton)
                    state = FileDialog.SAVE;
                    msg = "Save File";
                }
                FileDialog file = new FileDialog (this, msg, state);
                file.setFile ("*.java");  // set initial filename filter
                file.show(); // Blocks
                String curFile;
                if ((curFile = file.getFile()) != null) {
                    String filename = file.getDirectory() + curFile;
                    // curFile ends in .*.* if file does not exist
                    byte[] data;
                    setCursor (Frame.WAIT_CURSOR);
                    if (state == FileDialog.LOAD) {
                        File f = new File (filename);
                        try {
                            FileInputStream fin = new FileInputStream (f);
                            int filesize = (int)f.length();
                            data = new byte[filesize];
                            fin.read (data, 0, filesize);
                        } catch (FileNotFoundException exc) {
                            String errorString = "File Not Found: " + filename;
                            data = new byte[errorString.length()];
                            errorString.getBytes (0, errorString.length(), data, 0);
                        } catch (IOException exc) {
                            String errorString = "IOException: " + filename;
                            data = new byte[errorString.length()];
                            errorString.getBytes (0, errorString.length(), data, 0);
                        }
                        myLabel.setText ("Load: " + filename);
                    } else {
    // Remove trailing ".*.*" if present - signifies file does not exist
                        if (filename.indexOf (".*.*") != -1) {
                            filename = filename.substring (0, filename.length()-4);
                        }
                        File f = new File (filename);
                        try {
                            FileOutputStream fon = new FileOutputStream (f);
                            String text = myTextArea.getText();
                            int textsize = text.length();
                            data = new byte[textsize];
                            text.getBytes (0, textsize, data, 0);
                            fon.write (data);
                            fon.close ();
                        } catch (IOException exc) {
                            String errorString = "IOException: " + filename;
                            data = new byte[errorString.length()];
                            errorString.getBytes (0, errorString.length(), data, 0);
                        }
                        myLabel.setText ("Save: " + filename);
                    }
                    // Note - on successful save, text is redisplayed
                    myTextArea.setText (new String (data, 0));
                    setCursor (Frame.DEFAULT_CURSOR);
                }
                return true;
            }
            return false;
        }
    }

Most of this application is one long `action()` method that handles all the action events that take place within the `Frame`. The constructor doesn't do much besides arrange the display; it includes code to create a File menu with one item, Quit. This menu is visible in the upper left corner of the `Frame`; we'll see more about working with menus in Chapter 10, Would You Like to Choose from the Menu? We provide a `main()` method to display the `Frame` and a `handleEvent()` method to shut the application down if the event `WINDOW_DESTROY` occurs.

But the heart of this program is clearly its `action()` method. `action()` starts by checking whether the user selected a menu item; if so, it shuts down the application because the only item on our menu is Quit. It then checks whether the user clicked on one of the buttons and sets the `FileDialog` mode to `LOAD` or `SAVE` accordingly. It then sets a default filename, *.java, which limits the display to filenames ending in .java. Next, `action()` shows the dialog. Because file dialogs are modal, `show()` blocks until the user selects a file or clicks Cancel.

The next line detects whether or not `getFile()` returns `null`. A `null` return indicates that the user selected Cancel; in this case, the dialog disappears, but nothing else happens. We then build a complete filename from the directory name and the name the user selected. If the dialog's state is `LOAD`, we read the file and display it in the text area. Otherwise, the dialog's state must be `SAVE`, so we save the contents of the text area under the given filename. Note that we first check for the string `*.*` and remove it if it is present. In Java 1.1, these two lines are unnecessary, but they don't hurt, either.

Dialogs |  | Layouts