Android: Why subtitle in ListView not grey? - android

I use latest Android Studio and SDK. In preview & real device i see this:
My code:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="match_parent"
tools:context="com.myappname.view.AboutActivity">
<ListView
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:id="#+id/listViewAbout" />
</RelativeLayout>
How i make subtitle text color is gray? Like this:

I'm going out on a limb and assume that you're using the row layout simple_list_item_2.xml (based on the screenshot) which gives you two rows. The problem, if you may call it that, is that depending on the SDK version, the styling for this layout has changed.
On SDK 23, it looks like this:
However, on say SDK 19, it looks like this:
Why?
To understand this we first need to take a look at the xml that generates the rows from simple_list_item_2.xml, you'll see it's a pretty simple layout that uses the now deprecated view TwoLineListItem but that's just a plus on why to use your custom layout.
<TwoLineListItem xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:minHeight="?attr/listPreferredItemHeight"
android:mode="twoLine"
android:paddingStart="?attr/listPreferredItemPaddingStart"
android:paddingEnd="?attr/listPreferredItemPaddingEnd">
<TextView android:id="#id/text1"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_marginTop="8dp"
android:textAppearance="?attr/textAppearanceListItem" />
<TextView android:id="#id/text2"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_below="#id/text1"
android:layout_alignStart="#id/text1"
android:textAppearance="?attr/textAppearanceListItemSecondary" />
</TwoLineListItem>
The reason is because of the way the style textAppearanceListItemSecondary is resolved in each SDK version. The style is what gives the text the size, the color, etc. The evolution of the interface in Android has given birth to a huge ecosystem of themes and relying on the default styling will result in inconsistencies like the one you stumbled upon.
What to do about it?
You should use your own layout for this to allow for uniform styling across versions. To do so, please refer to any of the multiple questions covering this matter. But in short it just means creating a layout file, call it for example custom_row.xml and having the layout look exactly as you please. This also gives you total control over placement of the items, extra Views that you may need, and overhead in terms of coding is minimal compared to the SimpleAdapter or ArrayAdapter that perhaps you were using.
Note
You should consider moving your code towards RecyclerView instead of ListView if you haven't already.

You can set Textview property
android:textColor="#color/grey"
in you Adapter layout to change colour of your sub item
Hope this will help

Related

Android ConstraintLayout generates absolute values

I have recently started learning the new ConstraintLayout in Android Studio 2.2 and noticed that when I add simplest of the views, the layout editor automatically generates some absolute coordinates. Here is a sample XML:
<android.support.constraint.ConstraintLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto"
xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
android:id="#+id/activity_portfolio"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="match_parent"
tools:context="com.abc.Activity"
tools:layout_editor_absoluteX="0dp"
tools:layout_editor_absoluteY="81dp">
<TextView
android:text="#string/creator_name"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
tools:layout_editor_absoluteX="246dp"
tools:layout_editor_absoluteY="479dp"
android:id="#+id/first_textview"
app:layout_constraintRight_toRightOf="#+id/activity"
android:layout_marginEnd="16dp"
tools:layout_constraintRight_creator="0"
app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomOf="#+id/activity"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp"
tools:layout_constraintBottom_creator="0" />
</android.support.constraint.ConstraintLayout>
Notice the absolutes like 81dp, 246dp, 479dp... I tried to manually delete these, but when I go back to the "Design" tab and come back to the "Text" tab, these regenerate. Now, I have three questions:
Is there a way to tell Android Studio to not generate these?
Should I manually place them in dimens.xml?
Would these absolutes cause some layout problems in other devices?
You'll note that all of the absolute values are in the tools namespace - this means they are not compiled into your app, nor used in anything but in the tools (and in this case, the visual editor). They are simply to ensure that switching from the Design to Text tab is always consistent, with the underlying files remaining stable.
Is there a way to tell Android Studio to not generate these?
No.
Should I manually place them in dimens.xml?
These are only useful for the tools and therefore should not be added to a separate dimens.xml file that would be included in your final APK.
Would these absolutes cause some layout problems in other devices?
No, they are only used by the tools.
I'm not sure your original question contains your entire layout, as it references a widget with an id of #+id/activity, so the issue might lie elsewhere in your layout.
Ensure that no widget that exists within a ConstraintLayout has a layout_width or layout_height of match_parent.
MATCH_PARENT is not supported for widgets contained in a ConstraintLayout, though similar behavior can be defined by using MATCH_CONSTRAINT with the corresponding left/right or top/bottom constraints being set to "parent".
Source
If you use match_parent, Android Studio will generate these absolute values, as well as replacing match_parent with an absolute dimension.
Based on the layout you posted, your TextView probably had a layout_width or layout_height of match_parent before Android Studio replaced it.
You should replace android:layout_width="match_parent" with
android:layout_width="0dp"
app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndtOf="parent"
And android:layout_height="match_parent" with
android:layout_height="0dp"
app:layout_constraintTop_toTopOf="parent"
app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomtOf="parent"
In your specific layout, you probably want something like this:
<android.support.constraint.ConstraintLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto"
xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
android:id="#+id/activity_portfolio"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="match_parent"
tools:context="com.abc.Activity">
<TextView
android:text="#string/creator_name"
android:layout_width="0dp"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:id="#+id/first_textview"
app:layout_constraintStart_toStartOf="parent"
app:layout_constraintEnd_toEndOf="parent"
app:layout_constraintBottom_toBottomOf="#+id/activity"
android:layout_marginEnd="16dp"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp" />
</android.support.constraint.ConstraintLayout>
As a side notes to given answers, you can use the Magic Wand Icon in the toolbar menu above the design preview. Click on Infer Constraints button, this will automatically add some lines in the text field and the tools one will be converted to constrained.
Please see below picture :

Arrows for list view in Android

Is there any way where I can have default arrows in a list view,without reading them as an array from the xml? If I use ImageViews for arrows,then they might become really ugly. I am bad in graphic design.
Thank you.
EDIT
I found this site that could be useful to many people.
material design icons
You can always use this Unicode codes to draw arrows as text (if that is what you want)
U+2192 →
U+25B6 ▶
U+2794 ➔
More codes here: http://unicode-table.com/en/sets/arrows-symbols/
You can use custom layout to make the arrow as a part of the background of the list view row, look here
you will be able to do something like this:
Just follow the instructions
If you are bad at graphic design you can use free resources from net instead.
Here you have the Google free icon resources you can use with material style where you can find some arrows
Google icon pack
Look at this for android icons for different uses https://romannurik.github.io/AndroidAssetStudio/. You can use it for your list item row. If you want arrow like ios then create row ui and take imageview for arrow.
Row XML :
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="match_parent" >
<TextView
android:id="#+id/tvText"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="fill_parent"
android:text="Your Text"/>
<ImageView
android:id="#+id/ivArrow"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_alignParentRight="true"
android:src="#drawable/arrow" >
</ImageView>
</RelativeLayout>

Android: Overwrite standard xml layout's properties for list item

Is there a way of using the standard android xml files (simple list item multiple choices) and only adjust some of the properties so that I can also use the standard adapters? For now I made a new view xml and copied the code from simple_list_item_multiple_choice. There I only added a background color. This works, but now I have the almost same code 2 times.
I also know that custom view and custom adapter would work, but I hope there is a more "smart" solution for this (in my case really only the background color matters, the rest is fine). It seems a lot more code for only changing the background color of an item.
I thought with include/merge tags I could include the standard xml and justify to my needs, but this doesnt work (also because I couldn't use the standard arrayAdapter anymore)
This is how my view looks now:
<CheckedTextView xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:id="#android:id/text1"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="?android:attr/listPreferredItemHeight"
android:textAppearance="?android:attr/textAppearanceMedium"
android:gravity="center_vertical"
android:checkMark="?android:attr/listChoiceIndicatorMultiple"
android:paddingLeft="6dip"
android:paddingRight="6dip"
android:ellipsize="end"
android:singleLine="true"
android:background="#color/white"
/>
Did you check this out? Styles
I am not sure if this is what your question meant but according to what I could grasp, you were talking of styles only

Android nested layout

I am developing my first Android app. Although I have 15 years of Java software development experience, Android is new to me. My desired look is a background image with other images on top of it, as well as labels and phone numbers. It seems like the best way to accomplish this is a Linear Layout for the background image, with a nested layout for the other fields on top of that. I have searched online and cannot find any sample code on how to accomplish this. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
What are you using to develop? If you are you using Eclipse with the Android SDK this is super easy. Put the desired picture in the appropriate drawable folder, go to the graphical view of layout that corresponds to your activity, on the right side of the screen there is a list of all the properties, find background, then select your picture from drawables. You can also do this from the xml using android:background="#drawable/yourPic". This way you don't have to worry about having things layered on top of it.
I think you should go through followings:
1. http://phandroid.com/2011/05/11/10-tips-for-android-ui-design/
2. http://mobile.tutsplus.com/series/android-user-interface-design/
3. http://coding.smashingmagazine.com/2011/06/30/designing-for-android/
4. http://android-developers.blogspot.in/2011/09/thinking-like-web-designer.html
If I got, something like this can work:
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="fill_parent" >
<stuff>
<RelativeLayout
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="fill_parent" >
<stuff>
</RelativeLayout>
<stuff>
</RelativeLayout>
I used it in an app, and made the trick.
First of all, RelativeLayout is the best layout to use. It depends on your design.
If your design says to keep all the views either vertically OR horizontally, you can use LinearLayouts in between.
My suggested way:
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="match_parent" >
<LinearLayout android:id="#+id/layout1"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_parent"
android:orientation="Horizontal">
<View1 />
<View2 />
</LinearLayout>
</LinearLayout android:id="#+id/layout2"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_parent"
android:orientation="Vertical"
android:layout_below="#id/layout1">
<View3 />
<View4 />
</LinearLayout>
</RelativeLayout>
Which will yield you something like this

Android Layout Elements

I'm trying to make an Android layout like the one below. I have a couple of questions:
1 - what is the element called that FB uses for posts? Ie, it doesn't look like a text view, but the element looks like it separates each post with a divider line. Also, the text style is different for a person's name and how long ago they posted. I'm looking to duplicate this (minus pictures) but I can't find the right UI elements.
What is the element called at the bottom? It's like a static menu. IE, it's the same as a menu but instead of pressing "menu" to access it, it's on the page at all times.
Finally, are there good tutorials/examples on how to make nice looking, professional layouts like the apps on the market? The tutorials that I've found on layouts are really basic. I'd like to understand what elements exist, what all of the attributes mean and see examples, etc. So far I'm only able to see the capabilities from other applications. I'd like to have a handbook or some type of some type of reference manual to go to.
For the "fancy" text views you can make a linear layout that hosts a <RelativeLayout>:
<RelativeLayout
xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_weight="0">
<ImageView
android:id="#+id/userPhoto"
android:layout_height="64dip"
android:layout_width="64dip"
/>
<TextView
android:id="#+id/userFullName"
android:layout_height="25dp"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_marginLeft="70dp"
/>
</RelativeLayout>
Once you have a relative layout you can add different views inside of that to create a sort of customeized view.
As far as good examples I would look at this book. It's easy to understand and very helpful on such things.
I found a really helpful tutorial to solve a problem in ListView Row design a bit like yours. It goes a bit further explaining how to do Async Image loading but the first part should help you.
Also, I might be wrong (I am still a bit new to this) but I think the answer above lacks a TextView for the actual message besides the userName and the relative positions of the elements since it is a relative layout. Something like:
<TextView
android:id="#+id/userName"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_alignTop="#id/userPhoto"
android:layout_toRightOf="#id/userPhoto"
android:textSize="17dp"
android:textStyle="bold" />
<!-- actual message -->
<TextView
android:id="#+id/message"
android:layout_width="fill_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_below="#id/userName"
android:layout_marginTop="1dip"
android:layout_toRightOf="#id/userPhoto"
android:textSize="15dp" />
The key in organizing a relative layout is:
android:layout_alignTop="#id/userPhoto"
android:layout_toRightOf="#id/userPhoto"
and
android:layout_below="#id/userName"
android:layout_toRightOf="#id/userPhoto"
I might be wrong but if it helps, great! Just adding my bit to the other answer.
Cheers

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