Objects

Objects are components that together make up the runtime windows used by the end user. Objects include:

•Windows.

•Info boxes.

•Dialog boxes.

•Controls making up window look and feel, such as text boxes, check boxes and prompts.

•Container objects such as column boxes. The main purpose of these is to contain other objects. This is useful for layout specifications.

•Underlying objects responsible for window behavior, e.g. underlying queries.

Runtime objects are instances of object classes. When you develop applications in USoft Windows Designer, you design object classes which are instantiated at runtime. The Windows Designer catalog displays object classes.

Objects are organized in an ownership or containment hierarchy. A window may have an info box, which has a column box, which in turn has text boxes or other controls for each column. Objects within a window are thus organized in a hierarchical tree. This tree is visualized in the Object tree and Object Activator tools.

Each object class, and consequently all its runtime instances, has specific properties. Some of these properties affect the behavior or organization of the child objects in the hierarchy. For example, if a column box has a horizontal orientation, its columns are organized in rows across.