1. Can I use the components in a commercial application ?
Yes, all I ask is that you retain my comment blocks in the source code and inform me for interest only. The code is released under the Lesser GNU Public Licence (LGPL) which you should read and understand.
2. Are these components really free of charge ?
Yes, you can make a voluntary donation to the project if you want. This will say 'Thanks' to me, encourage me to support you and develop these things further.
3. The source will not compile, what is wrong ?
Have you compiled all the packages,
mseries.Calendar,
mseries.ui,
mseries.utils,
mseries.plaf.basic,
mseries.plaf.Motif,
mseries.plaf.Metal,
mseries.plaf.Windows,
mseries.plaf.Aqua,
mseries.plaf.Mac
mseries.plaf.kunststoff (optional)
4. How can I get bugs fixed/ changes made ?
Email me and I shall consider your request.
5. How do I install the components ?
Place the jar file, MDateSelector14-nnnnn.jar, where nnnnn is the build number, on the classpath.
6. What are resource keys for Localization
The sample below shows English key with French translations
# Column Headings
Mo=lu
Tu=ma
We=me
Th=je
Fr=ve
Sa=sa
Su=di
# Button Labels
Today=Aujourdhui
OK=Oui
Cancel=Non
The resource bundle root name is mseries.Calendar.DateSelectorRB
7. Can the MDateEntryField be used in a JTable ?
Yes, use the MDateEntryField in your renderer and/or editor. See my sample, MDateCellEditor.java There is also a demonstration class in the package (TableTest.java) that makes use of MDateCellEditor and shows how to configure it. This can be run using java mseries.ui.TableTest. The MDateEntryField can be used as an editor or renderer though separate instances are required.
8. How can I change the date format in the display on MDateEntryField ?
You can provide your own date formatter, probably based on DateFormat or SimpleDateFormat, make it implement the MDateFormat interface and set it using the setDateFormatter(MDateFormat) method. [The two Java classes mentioned do not implement any suitable interface so I defined one]
Build 340 onward uses a JFormattedTextField as the basis for the entry field, passing a DateFormat instance to the constructor will define the format automatically without the need for MDateFormat interface. Using the method setDateFormatter gives inconsistent results and should be avoided, the method remains for backward compatibility only.
9. I am having problems usign the MDateEntryField with an InputVerfier and FocusTraversalPolicy, the class passed into my component is not an instanceof MDateEntryField. How can I use MDateEntryField in these scenarios ?
The MDateEntryField is made up of a textfield and a JButton. The textfield is actually an instance of MDateField and it is this that gets passed to input verfiers and Focus Traversal Policies. Test for MDateField instead of MDateEntryField
10. When I change to Kunststoff Look and Feel in the demo class I get a ClassDefNotFound error
The jar as shipped has been built without support for Kunststoff Look and Feel. The source zip contains source code for this and the build.xml in the source zip can easily be adjusted to compile it in. A classpath needs to be specified at compile and runtime to include kunststoff.jar which I have not supplied.