/*
 This file is part of the software framework JStatCom, 
 a library for building applications for data based analysis.

 Copyright (C) 2000-2005  Markus Kraetzig

 This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify
 it under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License as
 published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2.1 of the
 License, or (at your option) any later version.

 This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but
 WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
 MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU
 Lesser General Public License for more details.

 You should have received a copy of the GNU Lesser General Public
 License along with this library; if not, write to the Free Software
 Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307
 USA
 */

package com.jstatcom.engine;
import javax.swing.JPanel;

/**
 * This class should be subclassed by panels laying out
 * an input mask to collect configuration information.
 * It will appear embedded in a ConfigDialog.
 * 

 * The types of engine specific information are stored in the respective
 * ConfigKeys implementation. It is not necessary
 * to provide options to change every setting, but only the ones
 * that need to be adjusted for every specific machine, for example
 * the location of engine executables.
 * 

 * Changes made in this panel are validated and stored in
 * an instance of ConfigHolder. Settings are saved
 * permanently in an XML file.
 * 

 * Every engine implementation should define a concrete
 * implementation of this class. It can be accessed via
 * the method getConfigPanel of EngineTypes.
 *
 * @author Markus Kraetzig
 *
 * @see com.jstatcom.engine.EngineTypes
 * @see com.jstatcom.engine.ConfigDialog
 * @see com.jstatcom.engine.ConfigKeys
 * @see com.jstatcom.engine.ConfigHolder
 */
public abstract class AbstractConfigPanel extends JPanel {
/**
 * Invokes superclass constructor.
 */
public AbstractConfigPanel() {
	super();
}


/**
 * Sets the input mask display to the settings already 
 * stored in configHolder. This method is
 * called by ConfigDialog before this panel
 * is shown.
 *
 * @param  configHolder the configuration holder 
 */
public abstract void setConfig(ConfigHolder configHolder);


/**
 * Stores the information from the input mask to configHolder.
 * This method is called by ConfigDialog when the
 * OK button is pressed.
 *
 * @param  configHolder the configuration holder
 * @return null if ok, error string otherwise
 */
public abstract String storeConfig(ConfigHolder configHolder);
}