Why Java forces me to initialize my JPanel?

[Morgan Morten]

Hello All,
Here is a question I have being trying to answer for the longest (forgive me if this is a basic question, but I taught myself Java and I could never answer this question myself):

I have a Frame and a Panel. My Panel shows a button from my Frame. My Frame shows my Panel.

I am able to pass my Frame's button to my Panel by the following statement:

Panel.add(MyFrame.Frame_Button);

But I can't pass my Panel to my Frame the same way:

Frame.getContentPane(MyPanel.Panel);

I can only pass it if I initialize it in my Frame first:

1) MyPanel Instance_MyPanel = new MyPanel();
2) Frame.getContentPane().add(Instance_MyPanel.Panel);

So, my question is this: Why I can pass my button to my Panel, but I can't pass my Panel to my Frame (the same way) without making an instance of my Panel first in my Frame? (even when I used the key word Static)

Here are the 2 files:

----- MyFrame.java ---

import javax.swing.JButton;
import javax.swing.JFrame;


public class MyFrame {

	static JFrame Frame = new JFrame();
	static JButton Frame_Button = new JButton("My Frame Button");
        MyPanel Instance_MyPanel = new MyPanel();  // --- Here I am initializing my Panel so I can use it in my Frame
	
	public MyFrame() 
	{
	     // --- can't use this ---	Frame.getContentPane().add(MyPanel.Panel);
		Frame.getContentPane().add(Instance_MyPanel.Panel); // --- here I am using an "instance" of my Panel
		Frame.pack();
		Frame.setVisible(true);
	}

	
	public static void main(String[] args) {
		
		new MyFrame();

	}

}

----- MyPanel.java-----

import javax.swing.JPanel;


public class MyPanel {

	JPanel Panel = new JPanel();
	
	public MyPanel() 
	{
	Panel.add(MyFrame.Frame_Button);  // ----- somehow, my Panel receives the Frame's button without problem
	}


}

Is there another way of passing this Panel to my Frame (without initializing it)?
I know I am asking a dumb question, but I least I will take this issue to rest.
~Thank 'yall ! Morgan

[Claude Moore]

Hi Morgan,

from your code it's clear that while Frame_Button is static within MyFrame class, while Panel isn't static in MyPanel; so if you want to reference Panel of MyPanel in MyFrame, you need to instantiate MyPanel before.

[Morgan Morten]

Claude,
I added the word "static" to my Panel (in MyPanel.java) and STILL the Panel will not show in the Frame ..


static JPanel Panel = new JPanel(); // --- Added the word 'Static' in MyPanel.java ---



That's my point, I can't show Panel without making an instance of it in the Frame

[Paul Clapham]

Morgan Morten wrote:That's my point, I can't show Panel without making an instance of it in the Frame

Well, of course you can't. The instance is what you would be displaying. Variables only exist so you can keep references to the instances which are what Java actually uses.

And when you do create a JPanel instance, there's nothing in it so you don't see anything when you display it. Can I suggest you start at the beginning of the Swing tutorial? And try to make your code look like the code you get from that tutorial -- what you've written so far is almost unreadable because of its failure to follow the Java coding standards.

[Claude Moore]

Morgan Morten wrote:
I added the word "static" to my Panel (in MyPanel.java) and STILL the Panel will not show in the Frame ..

Oh well, that's another problem... I did not understood what did you mean....

[Campbell Ritchie]

You should never use static in the hope it will work/compile, etc. That is a mistake in 99.9% of instances. Things static belong to the class, not to the object, so that is a completely different sort of design.

[Morgan Morten]

I got it. I will used instanciated classes to refer to the class objects. THANK YOU for all your help!
~Morgqn

[Campbell Ritchie]

You’re welcome