One of the more powerful Droplets GUI components is the Table, a grid of columns and rows which displays complex sets of data to end-users. Tables can present static information; dynamic information that is automatically scrolled across the visible GUI, or can serve as a set of hyperlinks to outside URLs. It also contains headers and a vertical scrollbar -- both of which can be made either visible or invisible. Every Table requires the use of a TableModel to manage the data to be displayed within the Table.

This tutorial focuses on the basics required to build any Table. Consult the Java API for more detailed information on creating automatic, timed scrolling of data across the Table, or the Droplets Developer Zone Training Course.

The basic steps in implementing a table within your Droplets applications are as follows:

1. Import the table package with your declarations:

import com.droplets.api.table.*;

2. Create two variables within your window class (Frame or Dialog) that represent the Table and the Table Model, respectively:

private MainTableModel m_tableModel = null;
private Table m_table = null;

3. Create a Table Model class, which will provide the Table with its data:

In order to populate the Table with its data, your Table Model class will have to include the following three methods:

public class MainTableModel extends TableModel
{
     public MainTableModel()
     {
     }

     public TableDimension getModelSize()
     {
          return new TableDimension(1, 1);
     }

     public String getColumnLabel (int col)
     {
          return new String ("Header");
     }

     public TableCellValue getCellValue(CellCoords cc)
     {
          return new TableCellValue("celldata");
     }
}

You will of course need to implement each of these methods so that it provides the Droplets Client with sufficient information on the format and population of the Table. getModelSize() should return the exact number or rows and columns within the visible Table. This function returns a TableDimension — two integers, the first indicating the number of rows and the second the number of columns.

getColumnLabel() should include logic for defining the labels provided for each individual column in the Table component, while getCellValue() indicates the individual string values for each of the Table's cells.