Module javafx.controls
Package javafx.scene.control

Class ChoiceBox<T>

java.lang.Object
javafx.scene.Node
javafx.scene.Parent
javafx.scene.layout.Region
javafx.scene.control.Control
javafx.scene.control.ChoiceBox<T>
All Implemented Interfaces:
Styleable, EventTarget, Skinnable
@DefaultProperty("items")
public class ChoiceBox<T>
extends Control
The ChoiceBox is used for presenting the user with a relatively small set of predefined choices from which they may choose. The ChoiceBox, when "showing", will display to the user these choices and allow them to pick exactly one choice. When not showing, the current choice is displayed.

By default, the ChoiceBox has no item selected unless otherwise specified. Although the ChoiceBox will only allow a user to select from the predefined list, it is possible for the developer to specify the selected item to be something other than what is available in the predefined list. This is required for several important use cases. Configuration of the ChoiceBox is order independent. You may either specify the items and then the selected item, or you may specify the selected item and then the items. Either way will function correctly.

ChoiceBox item selection is handled by SelectionModel. As with ListView and ComboBox, it is possible to modify the SelectionModel that is used, although this is likely to be rarely changed. ChoiceBox supports only a single selection model, hence the default used is a SingleSelectionModel.

Example: 

 ChoiceBox cb = new ChoiceBox();
 cb.getItems().addAll("item1", "item2", "item3");
Image of the ChoiceBox control
Since:
JavaFX 2.0

  • Property Details

  • Field Details

    • ON_SHOWING

      public static final EventType<Event> ON_SHOWING
      Called prior to the ChoiceBox showing its popup after the user has clicked or otherwise interacted with the ChoiceBox.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • ON_SHOWN

      public static final EventType<Event> ON_SHOWN
      Called after the ChoiceBox has shown its popup.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • ON_HIDING

      public static final EventType<Event> ON_HIDING
      Called when the ChoiceBox popup will be hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • ON_HIDDEN

      public static final EventType<Event> ON_HIDDEN
      Called when the ChoiceBox popup has been hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

  • Constructor Details

    • ChoiceBox

      public ChoiceBox()
      Create a new ChoiceBox which has an empty list of items.

    • ChoiceBox

      public ChoiceBox​(ObservableList<T> items)
      Create a new ChoiceBox with the given set of items. Since it is observable, the content of this list may change over time and the ChoiceBox will be updated accordingly.
      Parameters:
      items - the set of items

  • Method Details

    • setSelectionModel

      public final void setSelectionModel​(SingleSelectionModel<T> value)
      Sets the value of the property selectionModel.
      Property description:
      The selection model for the ChoiceBox. Only a single choice can be made, hence, the ChoiceBox supports only a SingleSelectionModel. Generally, the main interaction with the selection model is to explicitly set which item in the items list should be selected, or to listen to changes in the selection to know which item has been chosen.

    • getSelectionModel

      public final SingleSelectionModel<T> getSelectionModel()
      Gets the value of the property selectionModel.
      Property description:
      The selection model for the ChoiceBox. Only a single choice can be made, hence, the ChoiceBox supports only a SingleSelectionModel. Generally, the main interaction with the selection model is to explicitly set which item in the items list should be selected, or to listen to changes in the selection to know which item has been chosen.

    • selectionModelProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<SingleSelectionModel<T>> selectionModelProperty()
      The selection model for the ChoiceBox. Only a single choice can be made, hence, the ChoiceBox supports only a SingleSelectionModel. Generally, the main interaction with the selection model is to explicitly set which item in the items list should be selected, or to listen to changes in the selection to know which item has been chosen.
      See Also:
      getSelectionModel(), setSelectionModel(SingleSelectionModel)

    • isShowing

      public final boolean isShowing()
      Gets the value of the property showing.
      Property description:
      Indicates whether the drop down is displaying the list of choices to the user. This is a readonly property which should be manipulated by means of the #show and #hide methods.

    • showingProperty

      public final ReadOnlyBooleanProperty showingProperty()
      Indicates whether the drop down is displaying the list of choices to the user. This is a readonly property which should be manipulated by means of the #show and #hide methods.
      See Also:
      isShowing()

    • setItems

      public final void setItems​(ObservableList<T> value)
      Sets the value of the property items.
      Property description:
      The items to display in the choice box. The selected item (as indicated in the selection model) must always be one of these items.

    • getItems

      public final ObservableList<T> getItems()
      Gets the value of the property items.
      Property description:
      The items to display in the choice box. The selected item (as indicated in the selection model) must always be one of these items.

    • itemsProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<ObservableList<T>> itemsProperty()
      The items to display in the choice box. The selected item (as indicated in the selection model) must always be one of these items.
      See Also:
      getItems(), setItems(ObservableList)

    • converterProperty

      public ObjectProperty<StringConverter<T>> converterProperty()
      Allows a way to specify how to represent objects in the items list. When a StringConverter is set, the object toString method is not called and instead its toString(object T) is called, passing the objects in the items list. This is useful when using domain objects in a ChoiceBox as this property allows for customization of the representation. Also, any of the pre-built Converters available in the javafx.util.converter package can be set.
      Since:
      JavaFX 2.1
      See Also:
      getConverter(), setConverter(StringConverter)

    • setConverter

      public final void setConverter​(StringConverter<T> value)
      Sets the value of the property converter.
      Property description:
      Allows a way to specify how to represent objects in the items list. When a StringConverter is set, the object toString method is not called and instead its toString(object T) is called, passing the objects in the items list. This is useful when using domain objects in a ChoiceBox as this property allows for customization of the representation. Also, any of the pre-built Converters available in the javafx.util.converter package can be set.
      Since:
      JavaFX 2.1

    • getConverter

      public final StringConverter<T> getConverter()
      Gets the value of the property converter.
      Property description:
      Allows a way to specify how to represent objects in the items list. When a StringConverter is set, the object toString method is not called and instead its toString(object T) is called, passing the objects in the items list. This is useful when using domain objects in a ChoiceBox as this property allows for customization of the representation. Also, any of the pre-built Converters available in the javafx.util.converter package can be set.
      Since:
      JavaFX 2.1

    • valueProperty

      public ObjectProperty<T> valueProperty()
      The value of this ChoiceBox is defined as the selected item in the ChoiceBox selection model. The valueProperty is synchronized with the selectedItem. This property allows for bi-directional binding of external properties to the ChoiceBox and updates the selection model accordingly.
      Since:
      JavaFX 2.1
      See Also:
      getValue(), setValue(T)

    • setValue

      public final void setValue​(T value)
      Sets the value of the property value.
      Property description:
      The value of this ChoiceBox is defined as the selected item in the ChoiceBox selection model. The valueProperty is synchronized with the selectedItem. This property allows for bi-directional binding of external properties to the ChoiceBox and updates the selection model accordingly.
      Since:
      JavaFX 2.1

    • getValue

      public final T getValue()
      Gets the value of the property value.
      Property description:
      The value of this ChoiceBox is defined as the selected item in the ChoiceBox selection model. The valueProperty is synchronized with the selectedItem. This property allows for bi-directional binding of external properties to the ChoiceBox and updates the selection model accordingly.
      Since:
      JavaFX 2.1

    • onActionProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<EventHandler<ActionEvent>> onActionProperty()
      The ChoiceBox action, which is invoked whenever the ChoiceBox value property is changed. This may be due to the value property being programmatically changed or when the user selects an item in a popup menu.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60
      See Also:
      getOnAction(), setOnAction(EventHandler)

    • setOnAction

      public final void setOnAction​(EventHandler<ActionEvent> value)
      Sets the value of the property onAction.
      Property description:
      The ChoiceBox action, which is invoked whenever the ChoiceBox value property is changed. This may be due to the value property being programmatically changed or when the user selects an item in a popup menu.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • getOnAction

      public final EventHandler<ActionEvent> getOnAction()
      Gets the value of the property onAction.
      Property description:
      The ChoiceBox action, which is invoked whenever the ChoiceBox value property is changed. This may be due to the value property being programmatically changed or when the user selects an item in a popup menu.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • onShowingProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<EventHandler<Event>> onShowingProperty()
      Called just prior to the ChoiceBox popup being shown.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60
      See Also:
      getOnShowing(), setOnShowing(EventHandler)

    • setOnShowing

      public final void setOnShowing​(EventHandler<Event> value)
      Sets the value of the property onShowing.
      Property description:
      Called just prior to the ChoiceBox popup being shown.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • getOnShowing

      public final EventHandler<Event> getOnShowing()
      Gets the value of the property onShowing.
      Property description:
      Called just prior to the ChoiceBox popup being shown.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • onShownProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<EventHandler<Event>> onShownProperty()
      Called just after the ChoiceBox popup is shown.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60
      See Also:
      getOnShown(), setOnShown(EventHandler)

    • setOnShown

      public final void setOnShown​(EventHandler<Event> value)
      Sets the value of the property onShown.
      Property description:
      Called just after the ChoiceBox popup is shown.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • getOnShown

      public final EventHandler<Event> getOnShown()
      Gets the value of the property onShown.
      Property description:
      Called just after the ChoiceBox popup is shown.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • onHidingProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<EventHandler<Event>> onHidingProperty()
      Called just prior to the ChoiceBox popup being hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60
      See Also:
      getOnHiding(), setOnHiding(EventHandler)

    • setOnHiding

      public final void setOnHiding​(EventHandler<Event> value)
      Sets the value of the property onHiding.
      Property description:
      Called just prior to the ChoiceBox popup being hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • getOnHiding

      public final EventHandler<Event> getOnHiding()
      Gets the value of the property onHiding.
      Property description:
      Called just prior to the ChoiceBox popup being hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • onHiddenProperty

      public final ObjectProperty<EventHandler<Event>> onHiddenProperty()
      Called just after the ChoiceBox popup has been hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60
      See Also:
      getOnHidden(), setOnHidden(EventHandler)

    • setOnHidden

      public final void setOnHidden​(EventHandler<Event> value)
      Sets the value of the property onHidden.
      Property description:
      Called just after the ChoiceBox popup has been hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • getOnHidden

      public final EventHandler<Event> getOnHidden()
      Gets the value of the property onHidden.
      Property description:
      Called just after the ChoiceBox popup has been hidden.
      Since:
      JavaFX 8u60

    • show

      public void show()
      Opens the list of choices.

    • hide

      public void hide()
      Closes the list of choices.

    • createDefaultSkin

      protected Skin<?> createDefaultSkin()
      Create a new instance of the default skin for this control. This is called to create a skin for the control if no skin is provided via CSS -fx-skin or set explicitly in a sub-class with setSkin(...).
      Overrides:
      createDefaultSkin in class Control
      Returns:
      new instance of default skin for this control. If null then the control will have no skin unless one is provided by css.

    • queryAccessibleAttribute

      public Object queryAccessibleAttribute​(AccessibleAttribute attribute, Object... parameters)
      This method is called by the assistive technology to request the value for an attribute.

      This method is commonly overridden by subclasses to implement attributes that are required for a specific role.
      If a particular attribute is not handled, the superclass implementation must be called.

      Overrides:
      queryAccessibleAttribute in class Control
      Parameters:
      attribute - the requested attribute
      parameters - optional list of parameters
      Returns:
      the value for the requested attribute
      See Also:
      AccessibleAttribute

    • executeAccessibleAction

      public void executeAccessibleAction​(AccessibleAction action, Object... parameters)
      This method is called by the assistive technology to request the action indicated by the argument should be executed.

      This method is commonly overridden by subclasses to implement action that are required for a specific role.
      If a particular action is not handled, the superclass implementation must be called.

      Overrides:
      executeAccessibleAction in class Control
      Parameters:
      action - the action to execute
      parameters - optional list of parameters
      See Also:
      AccessibleAction