Chapter 4. A place for Components

When developers start to experiment or build applications with Ext, they often start by copying examples from the downloadable SDK. Although this approach is good for learning how a particular layout was accomplished, it falls short in explaining how the stuff works, which leads to those throbbing forehead arteries. In this chapter, I’ll explain some of the core topics, which are some of the building blocks to developing a successful UI deployment.

Here we’ll cover Containers, which provide the management of child items and are one of the most important concepts in the Ext framework. We’ll also dive into how the Panel works and explore the areas where it can display content and UI widgets. We’ll then explore Windows and the MessageBox, which float above all other content on the page. Toward the end, we’ll dive into using TabPanels and explore some of the usability issues that may occur when working with this widget.

Upon completion of this chapter, you’ll have the ability to manage the full CRUD (create, read, update, and delete) lifecycle for Containers and their child items, which you’ll depend on as you develop your applications.

4.1. The Panel

4.2. Popping up Windows

4.3. Components can live in tab panels too

4.4. Summary