SearchInput2
SearchInput2 is the search box itself: an input with a magnifier marker that
reports what is typed to the server while the user is still typing.
SearchInput2 box = new SearchInput2();
box.setHint("Type part of a name");
box.setOnLookupTyping(() -> showMatches(box.getValue()));
box.setReturnPressed(a -> takeTheFirstMatch());
cp.add(box);
What it is for
It is the box inside a LookupInput2, and that is
where most applications meet it. It is worth knowing on its own for the case
where a screen needs the typing behaviour without the value: a filter above a
list, a box that narrows a tree.
It is not an IControl: it has no value of type T, no mandatory state and
no binding. What it has is the text typed so far.
| Method | What it does |
|---|---|
getValue() |
the raw text currently in the box |
setOnLookupTyping(IExecute) |
called while typing, a short pause after each burst |
setReturnPressed(...) |
called when the user presses return in the box |
setHint(String) |
the tooltip |
setPopupWidth(int) |
the width for whatever is dropped down under it |
setFocus() |
put the cursor in it |
How the typing gets to the server
The control renders an ordinary input and attaches WebUI.SearchPopup to it in
the browser. That watches the keyboard and posts what has been typed after a
short idle - so the server is asked once per burst of typing rather than once
per keystroke, and a fast typist causes one round trip rather than ten.
The handler is free to do anything with the text. LookupInput2 runs a query
with it and hangs a SelectOnePanel - the drop-down list - inside the box; a
screen of your own can do the same, or nothing at all.