Setting Tabbing Order

The tabbing order is the order in which the input focus moves from bean to bean as the user presses the Tab key. The initial tabbing order is determined by the order in which you drop the beans. The first bean in the tabbing order receives the initial input focus. For example, if the first bean in the tabbing order is a button, that button receives the initial input focus when the application starts.

The tabbing order can be set or displayed only for beans that are placed within a composite bean. For example, if you place a row of buttons in a frame window, you can set the tabbing order for the buttons.

If the tabbing order includes each entry field in which a user can type, the user can move the input focus from one entry field to another. Arrow keys only move the cursor within an entry field; only the Tab key, backtab key, and mouse can change the input focus from one entry field to another. Read-only fields do not need to be included in the tabbing order.

Because the order in which beans are placed on a composite bean determines the tabbing order, you will probably need to change the order as you add or rearrange beans.

For example, drop three buttons and then rearrange them so that Button3 is between Button1 and Button2. The tabbing order of these buttons is Button1, Button2, Button3, even though Button3 is now between Button1 and Button2. You must change the order to have the focus move from Button1, Button3, and Button2.

The color of the tab tags reflect information about the beans that you use. Yellow tab tags represent simple beans, such as entry fields and buttons. Blue tab tags represent composite beans and container beans.


Related concepts
Visual Composition Editor Overview
Visual Programming Fundamentals
How Classes and Beans Are Related
Visual, Nonvisual, and Composite Beans

Related procedures
Working with Beans Visually
Composing Beans Visually
Adding the IBM Java Examples project
Setting the Tabbing Order

Related references
Visual Composition Editor
The Menu Bar in Visual Composition
Properties
Pop-Up Menus for the Visual Composition Editor