Panel States: A User Interface Design Pattern

By: R. Spall
Published in: Java Report, Feb. 1998
Pages: 23-25, 28-32
Category: GUI Development

Application of a framework of patterns to present user interface panels in a sequence.

Related patterns: Factory Method [Gamma+95], State [Gamma+95],

Pattern: Pluggable View Controller

A Java panel groups the controls for a user interface and represents the view and controller components. A panel has a single reference to its model. Using this reference, a panel may communicate changes to, and request information from, the model.

• This pattern is an extension of Model-View-Controller [Buschmann+96]

Pattern: Panel States

Present a collection of user interface panels in a sequence. Each panel displays different information, captures user input, and determines the next panel based on user choices.

• This pattern interacts with Pluggable View Controller and an application of State [Gamma+95]