List Model Controls - The Definitive Guide to Java Swing - page 466

Figure 13-8. Visual representation of selection modes

To change the selection mode of a JList , set its selectionMode property to one of the
ListSelectionModel constants shown in Table 13-6. For instance, the following would change
a list to single-selection mode:

JList list = new JList(...);
list.setSelectionMode(ListSelectionModel.SINGLE_SELECTION);

The DefaultListSelectionModel class is the default implementation of the
ListSelectionModel interface. You can examine any of its nine properties, shown in
Table 13-7, to learn about the currently selected range.

Table 13-7. DefaultListSelectionModel Properties

Property Name Data Type Access

anchorSelectionIndex int Read-write

leadAnchorNotificationEnabled boolean Read-write

leadSelectionIndex int Read-write

listSelectionListeners ListSelectionListener[ ] Read-only

maxSelectionIndex int

Read-only

minSelectionIndex int Read-only

selectionEmpty boolean Read-only

selectionMode int Read-write

valueIsAdjusting boolean Read-write

The selection model can show you what is currently being used in the multiple-selection
mode when the selectionEmpty property is false . Simply ask each index between the minimum
and maximum selection indices if it's selected with public boolean isSelectedIndex(int index) .
Because multiple-selection mode supports noncontiguous areas, this is the only way to find
out what's selected. However, the selectedIndices property of JList provides this information
without you needing to check it manually.