Form objects do not have any visual attributes other than implicit dimensions. A form acts as a container for the form field objects it owns. The visual appearance of a form is the result of the visual attributes of the form fields which it owns. When the painter is invoked by FORM DEFINE, the dimensions of the form are considered to be the internal dimensions (i.e. the "client area") of the window. When invoked by DISPLAY DEFINE, form objects are explicitly added to the display and can be positioned and sized as required. To inspect the attributes supported by the painter for form objects in DISPLAY DEFINE, display the Edit Form dialog by double clicking in any unoccupied area within the form. The Zim language includes an extensive suite of commands for dynamically modifying both the visual and behavioral characteristics the form fields owned by forms. The painter supports the creation of associations between windows, menus and forms so that they can be viewed and/or edited as a group.
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