Module java.desktop
Package java.awt

Class MenuBar

All Implemented Interfaces:
MenuContainer, Serializable, Accessible

public class MenuBar extends MenuComponent implements MenuContainer, Accessible
The MenuBar class encapsulates the platform's concept of a menu bar bound to a frame. In order to associate the menu bar with a Frame object, call the frame's setMenuBar method.

This is what a menu bar might look like:

Diagram of MenuBar containing 2 menus: Examples and Options. Examples
 menu is expanded showing items: Basic, Simple, Check, and More Examples.

A menu bar handles keyboard shortcuts for menu items, passing them along to its child menus. (Keyboard shortcuts, which are optional, provide the user with an alternative to the mouse for invoking a menu item and the action that is associated with it.) Each menu item can maintain an instance of MenuShortcut. The MenuBar class defines several methods, shortcuts() and getShortcutMenuItem(java.awt.MenuShortcut) that retrieve information about the shortcuts a given menu bar is managing.

Since:
1.0
See Also:
Frame, Frame.setMenuBar(java.awt.MenuBar), Menu, MenuItem, MenuShortcut, Serialized Form
  • Constructor Details

  • Method Details

    • addNotify

      public void addNotify()
      Creates the menu bar's peer. The peer allows us to change the appearance of the menu bar without changing any of the menu bar's functionality.
    • removeNotify

      public void removeNotify()
      Removes the menu bar's peer. The peer allows us to change the appearance of the menu bar without changing any of the menu bar's functionality.
      Overrides:
      removeNotify in class MenuComponent
    • getHelpMenu

      public Menu getHelpMenu()
      Gets the help menu on the menu bar.
      Returns:
      the help menu on this menu bar.
    • setHelpMenu

      public void setHelpMenu(Menu m)
      Sets the specified menu to be this menu bar's help menu. If this menu bar has an existing help menu, the old help menu is removed from the menu bar, and replaced with the specified menu.
      Parameters:
      m - the menu to be set as the help menu
    • add

      public Menu add(Menu m)
      Adds the specified menu to the menu bar. If the menu has been part of another menu bar, removes it from that menu bar.
      Parameters:
      m - the menu to be added
      Returns:
      the menu added
      See Also:
      remove(int), remove(java.awt.MenuComponent)
    • remove

      public void remove(int index)
      Removes the menu located at the specified index from this menu bar.
      Parameters:
      index - the position of the menu to be removed.
      See Also:
      add(java.awt.Menu)
    • remove

      public void remove(MenuComponent m)
      Removes the specified menu component from this menu bar.
      Specified by:
      remove in interface MenuContainer
      Parameters:
      m - the menu component to be removed.
      See Also:
      add(java.awt.Menu)
    • getMenuCount

      public int getMenuCount()
      Gets the number of menus on the menu bar.
      Returns:
      the number of menus on the menu bar.
      Since:
      1.1
    • countMenus

      @Deprecated public int countMenus()
      Deprecated.
      As of JDK version 1.1, replaced by getMenuCount().
      Gets the number of menus on the menu bar.
      Returns:
      the number of menus on the menu bar.
    • getMenu

      public Menu getMenu(int i)
      Gets the specified menu.
      Parameters:
      i - the index position of the menu to be returned.
      Returns:
      the menu at the specified index of this menu bar.
    • shortcuts

      public Enumeration<MenuShortcut> shortcuts()
      Gets an enumeration of all menu shortcuts this menu bar is managing.
      Returns:
      an enumeration of menu shortcuts that this menu bar is managing.
      Since:
      1.1
      See Also:
      MenuShortcut
    • getShortcutMenuItem

      public MenuItem getShortcutMenuItem(MenuShortcut s)
      Gets the instance of MenuItem associated with the specified MenuShortcut object, or null if none of the menu items being managed by this menu bar is associated with the specified menu shortcut.
      Parameters:
      s - the specified menu shortcut.
      Returns:
      the menu item for the specified shortcut.
      Since:
      1.1
      See Also:
      MenuItem, MenuShortcut
    • deleteShortcut

      public void deleteShortcut(MenuShortcut s)
      Deletes the specified menu shortcut.
      Parameters:
      s - the menu shortcut to delete.
      Since:
      1.1
    • getAccessibleContext

      public AccessibleContext getAccessibleContext()
      Gets the AccessibleContext associated with this MenuBar. For menu bars, the AccessibleContext takes the form of an AccessibleAWTMenuBar. A new AccessibleAWTMenuBar instance is created if necessary.
      Specified by:
      getAccessibleContext in interface Accessible
      Overrides:
      getAccessibleContext in class MenuComponent
      Returns:
      an AccessibleAWTMenuBar that serves as the AccessibleContext of this MenuBar
      Since:
      1.3