MenuItems in Choice component cut off using Firefox

[Mickey Segal]

As detailed at www.segal.org/java/choice_cut/ (with a working applet and
full source code) some MenuItems in a Choice component get cut off using
Firefox at 800 x 600 display resolution. The problem does not occur when
the same applet is run in Internet Explorer 7 using the same Java version.

Is this a bug or just a "difference"? Are there any workarounds other than
keeping menus small?

 

[Andrew Thompson]

As detailed at www.segal.org/java/choice_cut/ (with a working applet and
full source code) some MenuItems in a Choice component get cut off using
Firefox at 800 x 600 display resolution.

I have a lot of icons spread across my 1024x768
screen and XP screws up the locations if I 'downsize'.

Can you reproduce this problem by making the
browser window really small and shifting it to
the bottom of the screen?

....The problem does not occur when
the same applet is run in Internet Explorer 7 using the same Java version.

Is this a bug or just a "difference"?

Not sure yet. The thing is - I am not able to
run any modern Mozilla variant ..because of
some settings thing..

OTOH - I can give the following information.
In the situation described above, both IE 6
and Netscape 4.08 will pop the choice
*upwards* if forced to, to prevent any form
of clipping or cut-off.

Andrew T.

 

[Mickey Segal]

Can you reproduce this problem by making the
browser window really small and shifting it to
the bottom of the screen?

On resolutions higher than 800 x 600, if you make the browser window small
and at the bottom, the system is smart enough to pop the Choice up to use
the space available there.

This is the first problem I've seen that depends on which browser is used
with the same JVM on the same operating system. Does one bring this to the
attention of Sun, the Firefox folks or both?

 

[Andrew Thompson]

On resolutions higher than 800 x 600, if you make the browser window small
and at the bottom, the system is smart enough to pop the Choice up to use
the space available there.

This is the first problem I've seen that depends on which browser is used
with the same JVM on the same operating system.

It is also common for focus problems - determining whether
the applet or other web page elements get default focus, and
there was also a key typing problem reported recently for
Mozilla - but it went nowhere (not to mention the IE Eolas
patent thing).

...Does one bring this to the
attention of Sun, the Firefox folks or both?

Good question. I suggest both.

Andrew T.

 

[Mickey Segal]

Good question. I suggest both.

I filed a Mozilla bug report and an engineer at Sun said "I can't say right
now whether this is an AWT, Java Plugin or Mozilla/Firefox issue. I'll
investigate it and file a bug if required."

This sounds like something easy to fix and it is not hard to imagine why no
one stumbled across this before because it occurs only with a particular
combination of circumstances. With the demise of Microsoft Java and the
self-inflicted wounds to Internet Explorer 7 extra attention is now being
applied to tweaking the Firefox / Sun Java combination.