some general window builder questions

[TEMP USER]

hello,

i'm quite a newb of window builder pro (i only use swt designer in it to be exact,but maybe others will be useful in the future) , and it really rocks .
1.i read that it can be free of charge for personal use. is it true? is it for the pro version?
if not, are there any discounts for students? it's just too expensive for my budget...
2. it seems that the designer has many items that are on the left toolbar. will you please consider adding some kind of filter there so it could be easier to find what you wish to put?
3.i have a friend that has this program and he also wishes to ask if it's possible to put the licence file in a different location other than the desktop folder (if it's not there, the program asks for registation).
4.will there be a C++ version for this wonderful program? maybe a visual studio plugin?if not , can you please recommend one for me?
5.is it possible to catch special mouse buttons (button4,button5) on a browser ?
6.does the browser also support using webkit engine?if so, how?
7.suppose i use the mozilla engine (gecko) for the browser, how can i send events to it (such as zoom in, zoom out, change font size,...)? is there anywhere a good list of the things i can do with it?

keep the good work.

[Eric Clayberg]

1.i read that it can be free of charge for personal use. is it true? is it for the pro version? if not, are there any discounts for students?

A reduced functionality free version is available for general use (not the pro version) and a non-commercial license is available at half price. Inexpensive academic classroom bundles are available as well. You can also apply for free open source committer licenses for the pro version.

2. it seems that the designer has many items that are on the left toolbar. will you please consider adding some kind of filter there so it could be easier to find what you wish to put?

Do you mean a temporary or permanent filer? You can control what appears on the palette using the Palette Manager.

3.i have a friend that has this program and he also wishes to ask if it's possible to put the licence file in a different location other than the desktop folder (if it's not there, the program asks for registation).

The license file can go in the user's home directory or at the root of the C:/drive under Windows or /etc dirctory under Linux.

4.will there be a C++ version for this wonderful program? maybe a visual studio plugin?if not , can you please recommend one for me?

We have no plans at this time for either a C++ or VS version. That may change in the future. I am not familiar with the C++ or VS GUI markets.

5.is it possible to catch special mouse buttons (button4,button5) on a browser ?
6.does the browser also support using webkit engine?if so, how?
7.suppose i use the mozilla engine (gecko) for the browser, how can i send events to it (such as zoom in, zoom out, change font size,...)? is there anywhere a good list of the things i can do with it?

No idea. Those sound like good questions for the Eclipse SWT newsgroup.

[TEMP USER]

first i wish to thank you for the quick response.

1. "You can also apply for free open source committer licenses for the pro version. " - how? is it realy the same as the real pro version , yet free of charge?
2.cool. yet this is not what i had in mind . i meant having a textbox where you can type what you wish to find, and it will automatically filter as you type.it could also find using tags, for example, if the user is new to swt and he wishes to put a statusbar, the program should show him the usual items that are used as a statusbar.
3.thanks.i will tell him and see if that worked.
can you please add an option to choose where to put it?
4.i see. thanks.
5.+6.there is already an open sourced project that tries to integrate webkit engine into swt. i've succeded editing&compiling&running it on eclipse, but window builder has some problems using it.the link:
http://www.genuitec.com/about/labs-webk ... Guide.html
it's just a pitty that the swt doesn't have so much functionality of the browser . currently it has such basic features that you can't do anything impressive on it .

[Eric Clayberg]

1. "You can also apply for free open source committer licenses for the pro version. " - how? is it realy the same as the real pro version , yet free of charge?

Yes. It is the full Pro version. See...

http://www.instantiations.com/company/opensource.html

2.cool. yet this is not what i had in mind . i meant having a textbox where you can type what you wish to find, and it will automatically filter as you type.it could also find using tags, for example, if the user is new to swt and he wishes to put a statusbar, the program should show him the usual items that are used as a statusbar.

OK.

can you please add an option to choose where to put it?

Why?

5.+6.there is already an open sourced project that tries to integrate webkit engine into swt. i've succeded editing&compiling&running it on eclipse, but window builder has some problems using it

What problems?

[TEMP USER]

1.thanks.will check it out.
3.well , putting the file on drive C didn't work. only putting it on the desktop allows the program to run.maybe that's because of the way of installation? he installed it using eclipse itself (via the url) .
5.+6. well, on the second time i opened it , window builder refused to parse it anymore.

[Eric Clayberg]

3.well , putting the file on drive C didn't work. only putting it on the desktop allows the program to run.

Note that the default location is actually the user's home directory under Windows. E.g., C:/Users/Joe User/

5.+6. well, on the second time i opened it , window builder refused to parse it anymore.

We would need to see a test case as well as the complete Eclipse ".log" file.

A widget needs to conform to common SWT standards and not throw any exceptions on instantiation in order to be used in SWT Designer.

[TEMP USER]

3.you probably mean "C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME" . it also didn't work.
5+6.maybe that's because they use a different SWT . when using their SWT version, it seems to work fine, but when using the latest/Development build , it can't parse it, and the browser itself isn't shown when running the program.odd.

[Eric Clayberg]

3.you probably mean "C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME" . it also didn't work.

I meant "C:/Users/name" which is what is currenty used in Windows Vista.

"C:/Documents and Settings/name" would be used for older version of Windows like XP or 2000.

5+6.maybe that's because they use a different SWT . when using their SWT version, it seems to work fine, but when using the latest/Development build , it can't parse it, and the browser itself isn't shown when running the program.odd.

Sounds like a good question for Genuitec.

[TEMP USER]

3.anyway, it doesn't work.this is why i suggested to select where the file is located.
5+6. true.

7.i'm having some problems making a browser:it seems that i also have problems to put browser in style "SWT.MOZILLA" into composite, group and even tab-items . for the IE version, it seems to work fine. do you know why it happens? i also can't have dragging from/into browser .suppose i make a multi-tab browser, how can i make the browser of the tab close itself once i close the CTabItem of it?if i try to make a special class that extends CTabItem and have there a pointer to the browser, window builder cannot parse the new situation.

[Eric Clayberg]

3.anyway, it doesn't work.

Is there a permission problem with that directory? The user home directory has always been the default location for the license file and this has worked for >100,000 users. Something very unusual is happening locally on that machine, if this does not work. What is the exact symptom you are seeing? Is the license file created after activation?

7.i'm having some problems making a browser:it seems that i also have problems to put browser in style "SWT.MOZILLA" into composite, group and even tab-items . for the IE version, it seems to work fine. do you know why it happens?

No. Seems to be an issue with XULRunner. The same thing happens at runtime, so it isn't an SWT Designer issue.

i also can't have dragging from/into browser .suppose i make a multi-tab browser, how can i make the browser of the tab close itself once i close the CTabItem of it?

Sounds like a good question for the Eclipse SWT newsgroup.

if i try to make a special class that extends CTabItem and have there a pointer to the browser, window builder cannot parse the new situation.

We would need to see a complete test case and your Eclipse ".log" file.

[TEMP USER]

3.i've tried doing the same thing by myself (i got a new licence , yey!!!) , but i also failed. maybe window builder doesn't work on some version of eclipse? only up to a specific version?
7.i see.i will try to find a solution somewhere else. what kind of questions am i allowed to ask here about swt?about the ctabitem , i will first install window-builder properly . however, i remember that i had problem with the regular tab-item - i couldn't drag anything into it using the window-builder.

EDIT: well i don't know what is going on with the installer. each time i try to install using the installer of window-builder, there is no way to see it on eclipse-not in the installed plugins, not in the new project window, and there is no 'design' tab in the bottom of the java editor .
the only way i succeeded installing it is using the URL method, of installing from within eclipse. however, each time i activate it using the serial key , it creates the licence file in the desktop, and if i put it on both "C:" and the "C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME" , it doesn't help and it wnat to activate again.i also tried both the new RC3 version of eclipse (galileo) and the older version (3.4.2) . it didn't help and i get the same results.

[Eric Clayberg]

i've tried doing the same thing by myself, but i also failed.

What is the value of System.getProperty("user.home") on your machine and on your friend's machine?

It should point to your home directory under Windows.

maybe window builder doesn't work on some version of eclipse? only up to a specific version?

WindowBuilder works on Eclipse 3.2, 3.3, 3.4 and 3.5.

what kind of questions am i allowed to ask here about swt?

This forum is for questions about SWT Designer. General questions about SWT should be posted to the Eclipse SWT newsgroup.

i remember that i had problem with the regular tab-item - i couldn't drag anything into it using the window-builder.

If you want a TabItem that can contain multiple children, drag a Composite and drop it on the TabFolder. That will create a TabItem capable of accepting multiple children.

well i don't know what is going on with the installer

The installer should only be used for Eclipse 3.2 and 3.3 due to serious bugs in the Eclipse 3.4 p2 subsystem.

For Eclipse 3.4 and 3.5, you should only use the update site.

each time i try to install using the installer of window-builder, there is no way to see it on eclipse-not in the installed plugins

You are likely running into a well known Eclipse 3.4 p2 bug. The work around is to delete and replace the eclipse/configuration and eclipse/p2 directories with the ones from your original Eclipse distribution ZIP file.

each time i activate it using the serial key , it creates the licence file in the desktop

Do you have the Java system variable "user.home" assigned to your desktop directory for some reason? It should point to "C:\Documents and Settings\USERNAME".

[TEMP USER]

System.getProperty("user.home") returns the desktop path.
i thought that only linux has a home directory.
anyway, what does it mean for me to have a home directory on windows?there was never a problem of other software , and none had to use the desktop for their files. they always used the normal paths (either their path, or the "c:\documents and settings" path , or any other ) but never the desktop.
the only thing i remember of setting about the desktop is where i wanted to put the downloads . nothing more.
about the installer, do you mean that it is possible to install using the installer, by deleting the folders that you've mentioned? if so, it didn't work.

[Eric Clayberg]

System.getProperty("user.home") returns the desktop path.

Well, that completely explains the problem. The "user.home" directory should always point to your actual user home directory. If that value has been reassigned elsewhere, you are telling Java to use a different directory as your home directory. The license system looks for the license file in your user home directory, so it is indeed working correctly and as expected.

i thought that only linux has a home directory

Windows and OSX do as well.

anyway, what does it mean for me to have a home directory on windows?

That is where Windows will put most user-specific files. If multiple users are defined on the Windows system, each has its own home directory to facilitate each user having their own settings.

there was never a problem of other software

It would be a problem for any Java-based app like Eclipse or SWT Designer.

and none had to use the desktop for their files

Our product does not need to use the desktop either.

they always used the normal paths (either their path, or the "c:\documents and settings" path , or any other ) but never the desktop.

Our product also uses the "normal path". It just so happens that on your system that path has been redefined to point to your desktop. If you redefine it back the way it supposed to be defined, it will then work as you wish. In fact, you can redefine "user.home" to be anywhere you like, and the license file will then go there (so in effect, you already have the user preference you were wanting).

the only thing i remember of setting about the desktop is where i wanted to put the downloads . nothing more.

And yet, you (or someone) has managed to change your user home directory under Java to point to your desktop. How or when that might have happened, I don't know.

about the installer, do you mean that it is possible to install using the installer, by deleting the folders that you've mentioned?

If you delete and replace them with the original versions from the Eclipse ZIP file, yes. Those directories just hold a cache of installed plugins. Under Eclipse 3.4, this cache is known to be quite buggy and can easily become corrupted and confused. Replacing those directories with the originals will cause Eclipse to rebuild and recache its intalled plugin info.

That said, the installer is only recommended for use with Eclipse 3.2 and 3.3 (which don't have that problem). The update site is the preferred (and by far he easiest) installation option for Eclipse 3.4 and 3.5. Going forward, it will likely be the only install option we support for Eclipse 3.4 and above.

[TEMP USER]

about the home-path, how can i change it? should the name of it be %USERPROFILE% or something like that?
when i said no program used the desktop for its files, i meant that it can't be the home directory, since there are no special files there. something is probably wrong on either java,eclipse, or your program .that's becuase no installation of programs has put any special files on the desktop (other than links to the installed program, of course) and they all used the normal path without any problems.why not putting the licence file inside the program directory anyway?
what problems will eclipse have with the desktop? it never had any problems, not even the newest version of it.
EDIT:it seems that maybe it's a known java bug:
http://wagenknecht.org/blog/archives/20 ... rhome.html

about the installer, the workarround doesn't work, so i installed via the update site.

back about the tabItem, will it automatically free/dispose the items that are inside it when the user closes it?