Class AbstractEditorComponent

All Implemented Interfaces:
Animation, Editable, StyleListener, Iterable<Component>
Direct Known Subclasses:
CodeEditor, RichTextArea

public abstract class AbstractEditorComponent extends Container

Base class for the native visual editors (rich text and code) introduced by Codename One.

The editor components are designed around a semantic command channel rather than a single hard-coded implementation. Every concrete editor (RichTextArea, CodeEditor) speaks to its backend exclusively through #command(String, String), #query(String, String, SuccessCallback) and the inbound #onEditorEvent(String, String) dispatch. Two interchangeable backends honor that channel:

  1. A 100% cross platform fallback backed by BrowserComponent (a contenteditable surface for rich text, a syntax highlighting surface for code). This works on every platform that supports the native web widget and gets virtual keyboard handling on phones/tablets and physical keyboard handling on desktop for free.
  2. An optional native backend supplied by the platform port (see com.codename1.impl.CodenameOneImplementation#createNativeEditorPeer(AbstractEditorComponent, String)). When a port returns a non-null native peer the editor drives it through editorPeerCommand / editorPeerQuery instead of the browser, allowing a platform to provide a genuinely native experience that can exceed an HTML based app.

Both backends are addressed with the same vocabulary so concrete editors never need to know which one is active.

  • Constructor Details

    • AbstractEditorComponent

      protected AbstractEditorComponent(String uiid)

      Creates the editor and begins asynchronous backend initialization.

      Parameters
      • uiid: the UIID applied to the editor container
  • Method Details

    • fireEditorEvent

      public void fireEditorEvent(String type, String value)

      Entry point invoked by native editor peers to deliver events back to Codename One. This routes to the same dispatch path used by the browser message bridge so subclasses handle events uniformly regardless of backend.

      Parameters
      • type: the event type

      • value: optional payload, may be null

    • command

      protected void command(String name, String arg)

      Sends a one way command to the active backend. If the backend is not ready yet the command is queued and replayed once initialization completes.

      Parameters
      • name: the semantic command name understood by both backends

      • arg: an optional string argument, may be null

    • query

      protected void query(String name, String arg, SuccessCallback<String> callback)

      Queries the active backend for a string value asynchronously. The callback is always invoked on the EDT. If the backend is not ready the query is deferred until it is.

      Parameters
      • name: the semantic query name understood by both backends

      • arg: an optional string argument, may be null

      • callback: receives the query result

    • onReady

      public void onReady(Runnable r)

      Runs the supplied task once the editor backend is ready, or immediately if it already is.

      Parameters
      • r: the task to run on the EDT when the editor is ready
    • isEditorReady

      public boolean isEditorReady()
      Returns true once the underlying editor backend has finished initializing and is ready to accept commands.
    • isNativeEditor

      public boolean isNativeEditor()
      True when a platform supplied native editor backend is in use, false when the cross platform BrowserComponent fallback is active.
    • getInternalBrowser

      public BrowserComponent getInternalBrowser()
      Returns the underlying BrowserComponent used by the fallback backend, or null when a native backend is active. Exposed for advanced customization; most apps never need this.
    • addChangeListener

      public void addChangeListener(ActionListener l)

      Adds a listener notified whenever the editor content changes.

      Parameters
      • l: the change listener
    • removeChangeListener

      public void removeChangeListener(ActionListener l)

      Removes a previously registered change listener.

      Parameters
      • l: the change listener
    • addReadyListener

      public void addReadyListener(ActionListener l)

      Adds a listener notified once when the editor backend becomes ready.

      Parameters
      • l: the ready listener
    • removeReadyListener

      public void removeReadyListener(ActionListener l)

      Removes a previously registered ready listener.

      Parameters
      • l: the ready listener
    • setEditable

      public void setEditable(boolean editable)

      Enables or disables editing. A disabled editor still displays content but rejects input.

      Parameters
      • editable: true to allow editing
    • isEditable

      public boolean isEditable()
      Returns true if the editor currently allows editing.
      Specified by:
      isEditable in interface Editable
      Overrides:
      isEditable in class Component
    • focusEditor

      public void focusEditor()
      Requests keyboard focus for the editing surface, showing the virtual keyboard on touch devices.
    • blurEditor

      public void blurEditor()
      Removes keyboard focus from the editing surface, hiding the virtual keyboard on touch devices.