aCupOfCoffee 1.2 beta3 ---------------------- aCupOfCoffee is a Java Interface Builder palette for the NEXTSTEP InterfaceBuilder. You can build Applets, Frames, Panels, Dialogs, Windows. aCupOfCoffee supports all standard AWT Component subclasses (Buttons, TextFields, TextAreas, Scrollbars, Checkboxes and CheckboxGroups, Lists, Labels, Choices). From the edited interface, a Java class is generated. You can use this class as is, together with other classes, or you can subclass it to add your custom functionality. Please don't edit the generated code, it is maintained by aCupOfCoffees coffeemaker. With aCupOfCoffee, you get an AbsoluteLayout manager that allows to resize your components according to the constraints you set in InterfaceBuilder. The layout manager also ensures that regions of the container are enlarged (and other parts reduced in size) if components need more space on a certain platform, than you gave them in IB. Also, aCupOfCoffee supports the interaction between the user interface and your application objects. It generates variables that allow you to access the interface objects. Also it generates an event handler for you, that will call your application object methods in response to user actions. See at the end of this file for copyright and usage restrictions. How to use aCupOfCoffee ----------------------- First you need NEXTSTEP 3.2 or 3.3 User + Developer to run aCupOfCoffee. After unarchiving the delivery (...tar.gz) file with Opener.app, you double-click aCupOfCoffee.palette. It opens in InterfaceBuilder. Create a new empty document with Command-Shift-N. Drag the coffeemaker from the palette and drop it into the document window in the lower left corner of the screen. Then drag a Container from the palette to somewhere in the middle of the screen. You get a large container window. Drag and drop components from the palette to the container. Select the components in the container and open the Inspector Panel (Command-1). Here you can change the component attributes. To change texts of components, double-click them in the container window, then edit them. With Command-3 you get the size inspector to define how components are resized. To generate Java code, select the coffeemaker in the document window, customize it in the Inspector Panel (Command-1), then press "Make Java". With Command-s you can save your InterfaceBuilder document for later use. With Command-g you can group your components in a box. That's it, basically. If you are a bit familiar with NeXTs, InterfaceBuilder, you should feel comfortable enough with aCupOfCoffee until a manual is written :-) Here are, finally, some Not-To-Do's: Please don't use more than one container per nib file. Coffemaker would be rather confused. Please don't intermix Java objects with NEXTSTEP objects for the same reason. Also don't try to arrange Java objects into arrays with Alt-Dragging, this won't work (except CheckboxGroups, where you change the number of rows and columns by Alt-Dragging the knobs). Beta Release ------------ This is a beta release. It has been tested on a NeXT computer and an Intel-PC with NEXTSTEP 3.3. The Java output has been tested, to a very limited amount, with the JDK on Win95, and with Netscape 2.0 on Win95, solaris, and HP-UX. Please expect any kind of bugs when you use aCupOfCoffee. Don't use aCupOfCoffee if you don't have backups of your important files! Please see the RELEASE_NOTES for a list of known bugs. The main bug is currently on Win95 with the Box.java class delivered with aCupOfCoffee. Due to a bug in the Win95 AWT, if there are multiple boxes in one container, sometimes the boxes are displayed on wrong places. Different people in the net have reported this AWT bug and there seems to be no workaround. Since I'm not able to fix it now, I have included the source code for the box (the current and eight older versions), in case somebody could help to debug it. The Boxes do work on solaris and HP-UX. Any help by testing aCupOfCoffee and reporting bugs (suckow@contrib.de) is highly appreciated. Platforms --------- aCupOfCoffee runs with NEXTSTEP Developer 3.2 or 3.3 on all architectures (Motorola, Intel, Sun, HP). The output has been tested with the Java Development Kit from Sun on Windows95 as well as with Netscape 2.0 on Windows95, solaris, and HP-UX. Limitations ------------ Setting of background and foreground colors is not supported. License -------- Permission to use, copy, modify and distribute this software and its documentation for non-commercial purposes, is hereby granted without fee, provided that this license information and copyright notice appear in all copies. "Commercial purposes" is defined within the scope of this license as the generation of monetary revenue from the use or redistribution of the software, beit by itself or "bundled" with or incorporated into any other product. Also generation of reveny by the use or redistribution of other software generated by this software is considered a "commercial purpose". Commercial purposes also include the internal use by commercial organizations of the software or software generated by it, in intranet applications or web pages. No Warranty: This software is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. No Liability For Consequential Damages: In no event shall the author or melonSoft Ralf Suckow Berlin be liable for any damages, including any lost profits, lost savings or other incidental or consequential damages arising out of the use or inability to use this software, even if the author or melonSoft Ralf Suckow Berlin has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Pricing ------- aCupOfCoffee is free for any non-commercial purposes. Please see above for more detailed explanation of the term commercial purposes. Any commercial use, direct or indirect, is not free. melonSoft Ralf Suckow Berlin announced a special pricing for early adopters of US$99. The normal price of US $299. The special offer is valid until April 30, 1996. Release 1.2 includes runtime Java classes that resolve the "absolute layout versus layout manager" problem. The special price of $99 includes unlimited use of these classes in your organization or your web pages. You are also allowed to pass the classes to other organizations together with the user interfaces you built with aCupOfCoffee, at no extra charge. For Information and Bug Reports -------------------------------- Any help to improve aCupOfCoffee and reporting bugs (suckow@contrib.de) is highly appreciated. melonSoft Ralf Suckow Berlin e-mail: suckow@contrib.de Koenigswinterstrasse 12 fax: (+4930) 5030 595 10318 Berlin, Germany (!! Address and Fax# changed !!) Copyright --------- This description as well as the software it describes is Copyright (1996) by melonSoft Ralf Suckow, Berlin. All Rights Reserved. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Java and solaris are trademarks or registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. NEXTSTEP is a trademark of NeXT Computer, Inc. HP-UX is possibly a trademark or registered trademark of Hewlett Packard, Inc. aCupOfCoffee is a trademark of melonSoft Ralf Suckow Berlin. Netscape is a trademark or registered trademark of Netscape Communications Inc. All other trademarks belong to their respective owners.
These are the contents of the former NiCE NeXT User Group NeXTSTEP/OpenStep software archive, currently hosted by Netfuture.ch.
