WFC Programming Concepts

Windows Foundation Classes for Java (WFC) provides a framework of Java packages that support components targeted for the Windows operating system and the Dynamic HTML object model. WFC is tightly integrated with the Visual J++ development environment and provides a full set of Windows controls written in Java. Building a Java application for Windows is made much easier by this tight integration and the support of features such as IntelliSense, the Forms Designer, the Application Wizard, and the Object Browser. While these Visual J++ features put you well on your way to creating applications, you'll probably want to understand the structure and logic behind the packages and classes that make up WFC.

The purpose of this section is to provide a conceptual framework for the WFC packages and classes and to explain some of the fundamental WFC models. Many of the packages exist as infrastructure for the component model and can be ignored by developers focusing on using the WFC controls. Other packages are most easily accessed from the Visual J++ Forms Designer. When you start exploring the WFC library, you'll want to know which packages and classes are important for your particular application.

The following topics are covered in this section:

• WFC Packages provides a high-level overview of the main packages that make up WFC.
  
  
• Working with WFC Visual Components describes the controls, forms, and graphical objects in WFC, which include the following:
  • Windows Visual Components
    
    
  • Dynamic HTML Visual Components
• Handling Events in WFC describes the use of delegates for handling events.
  
  
• Localizing Your Application describes the Visual J++ and WFC support and methodology for localizing your project in various languages.
  
  
• Using WFC Application Services describes some of the core application features and includes the following subtopics:
  • Starting and Quitting an Application
    
    
  • Handling Application Events
    
    
  • Accessing System Information
    
    
  • Performing Clipboard and Drag-and-Drop Operations
• Using Java Threads with WFC describes the threading model for WFC and includes the following subtopics:
  • Mixing Java and Win32 Threading Models
    
    
  • Creating and Exiting a Thread
    
    
  • Using Thread Storage
    
    
  • Working with Thread Exceptions