Button
To create a window item, you first open the Tools window, choose a tool, then click in a view window where you want the top left corner of the item to be. For some items you then enter additional information into an item-specific dialog. For some items you will have an insertion point so that you can enter the title of the item. The following sections provide additional information about each kind of window item.
ButtonTo create a button, choose the Button tool, then click where you want the button. AppMaker creates a standard button and puts an insertion point so that you can edit the button's title. After typing a title, click outside the button or press Enter to stop editing.
After creating a button, you can use the Button Info dialog to make it the default button or to change it to a different kind of button:
CheckboxTo create a checkbox, choose the Checkbox tool, then click where you want the checkbox. AppMaker creates a standard checkbox and puts an insertion point so that you can edit its title. After typing a title, click outside the checkbox or press Enter to stop editing.
After creating a checkbox, you can use the Checkbox Info dialog to change it to a different kind of checkbox:
EditTextAppMaker supports four flavors of editable text: small, large, styled, and integer. To add a scrollbar to an edit text item, choose the scrollbar tool, then click near the right or bottom edge of the edit field. To set font, size, style, or text color choose a Text Style.
The Icon item is superfluous. Both Icon items and Picture items reference an Image which can contain either PICT or icon types. Icon Item will be deleted in a future release of AppMaker and Picture Item will be renamed to Graphic Item.
LayerGroupA Layer Group is a collection of layers such as many drawing programs provide. It behaves like a radio group in that only one layer at a time is visible. The layer group usually is controlled by a separate window item. A Tab Panel is a special case of layer group that includes both a Tab Control and a layer group.
To create a layer group, choose the LayerGroup tool, then click where you want the group. To create a layer in the group, select the group (if not already selected), then choose Create Layer from the Edit menu. In the Layer Info dialog, enter a Name and an ID. The IDs of layers normally will be numbered 1..N but can be whatever values match the item that controls the layer group. For example, within AppMaker there is a layer group controlled by a popup that produce the values (0, 1, 2, 17776, 577, 578). The IDs of the layers within the group match these values instead of a simple 1..6.
To add items inside each layer, use an Outline window to select a layer. In the View editor the selected layer will be visible and other layers will be hidden.
LineTo create a line, choose the Line tool, then click where you want the top left of the line. Then resize. You can choose a Drawing Style to set line size, line color, and 3D-ness.
ListWhen you click with the List tool, AppMaker creates a simple text list with a vertical scrollbar. In the List Info dialog you can change the list to another flavor and you can enter a list of values to appear in the list. You can add a horizontal scrollbar to the list by choosing the scrollbar tool then clicking near the bottom edge of the list.
In the current implementation a picture list is used only internally in AppMaker (for displaying the Tools palette). The Panel flavor is not yet implemented. It will let you put several window items (e.g. an icon, some text, and a popup) in each cell of the list. The StoneTable flavor is currently implemented only for Procedural C.
PaletteA palette is a set of objects represented by a picture which is arranged in rows and columns. You create a palette by choosing the Palette tool, then clicking where you want the palette. AppMaker displays the Palette info dialog so that you can select a picture and set the number of rows and columns. You can also enter a frame thickness for the rectangle which will be drawn around the selected item at runtime (or in AppMaker's simulator). A frame size of 0 indicates that the selected cell will be inverted instead of framed.
PictureWhen you click with the Picture tool, AppMaker displays an info dialog so that you can choose an image. In the current implementation the image must be a picture. In a future release the image can be any graphic kind. AppMaker will generate the proper code to draw a PICT, cicn, ICN#, etc. You can also specify how to scale the picture if it is larger or smaller than the rectangle of the picture item.
PopupWhen you create a Popup item, you can specify the values that appear in the popup either by selecting a menu which you have previously created or by entering a list of values for the popup.
ProgressBarAppMaker supports several flavors of Progress Bars. The Gadgets example shows some of them.
RadioButtonAfter creating a radio button, you can use the Radio Button Info dialog to change it to a different kind of radio button:
RadioGroupA Radio Group serves two purposes: It provides visual grouping of its contents; It provides the functional behavior of radio buttons. When you create radio buttons they should always be inside a radio group. You can also use a radio group without any nested radio buttons just to provide the visual grouping.
When you create a Radio Group you can have AppMaker create the radio buttons for you or you can manually create them yourself. If you enter values into the values list AppMaker will create a radio button for each value.
If you leave the group's title empty, AppMaker will create an invisible group that provides the radio function without the visual grouping.
RectangleA Rectangle is used for visual grouping of its contained items. If you provide a title it will have the same appearance as a radio group but without the functional behavior of a radio group.
You can choose a Drawing Style to create a 3D appearance of a Primary box (grooved), a Secondary box (inset), or raised.
ScrollbarScrollbars are used in two different ways. One is to scroll a rectangular area, possibly the entire window or perhaps just an edit text field or a list. The second use for a scrollbar is as a freee-standing control for setting a value. The first use might be called a scroller bar, the second a slider.
To create a scroller bar on an item, or on the entire window, click near the right edge or the bottom edge of the item (or window).
To create a slider, click where you want the item (but not too close to an edge). In the Scrollbar Info dialog you can choose from several different flavors of slider. For a picture slider, you can specify a picture to be used as the background of the slider and a picture to be used as the indicator.
StaticTextWhat is there to say about Static Text? You can type directly in place or into the Info dialog. You can set a Text Style.
TabPanelA Tab Panel is a kind of Layer Group that includes a Tab control for selecting layers. Each tab of the tab control corresponds to a layer of the layer group. When you create a tab panel you enter two or more labels. For each label, AppMaker automatically creates a nested layer with a matching Name and with IDs from 1..N.
If you leave the Tab Height empty it defaults to 20. If you omit "Tabs per row" it defaults to 4. You can have more than four labels. They will appear on multiple rows or you can change the number of Tabs per row.
