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EiffelStudio

# Builder window

The Builder window provides a view of the objects in your system, in which the objects may be manipulated.

This window may either be shown or hidden (default). To change between these two states, click on the main toolbar, or select Show/Hide builder window from the View menu.

The content of this window is a representation of the objects you have defined in your project. Each object is represented by the EiffelVision2 control matching its type. For example, an objectrepresenting an EV_BUTTON will be displayed in here using an EV_BUTTON. As this view provides direct access to the objects ( Pick any of the controls in this window), it enables you to build your interface within a view which provides rich visual feedback.

Because this window is just a view of the objects, it will be always synchronized with the layout constructor. This means you can re-parent objects, using the pick and drop transport method, seamlessly between the two views.

Note: Holding Ctrl while right clicking on an object in the Builder Window creates a new object editor targeted to the object. Holding Ctrl and Shift while right clicking on an object, highlights it within the layout constructor.

## Visual Differences

Although the builder window attempts to show you the interface you are developing, it is not a completely accurate representation (Unlike the display window). The main difference is that all objects representing descendents of EV_CONTAINER are parented in a frame. This was implemented so that you would be able to easily manipulate the containers.

Imagine that this was not the case, and each container object was just represented by an EiffelVision2 object matching its type. Because these containers have no visible screen space when filled with children, manipulation of them would have been difficult, and the functionality of this view would be compromised.

In the screenshot above, you can see that there are two objects representing containers in your project, an EV_VERTICAL_BOX, and an EV_HORIZONTAL_BOX (Excluding the EV_TITLED_WINDOW object represented by this window).

The properties of the objects in you system are always reflected in this window, with a few exceptions:

- 'user_can_resize', 'maximum_width', 'maximum_height' and 'title_string' are not reflected in this window.
- 'minimum_width' and `minimum_height' are not reflected in any of the controls representing objects within this window.

See also
Display window
Layout constructor