Hy guys, I'm new at ObjC and I'm still learning;
[sliderContrast setHidden:YES] (i also used slider.hidden = YES) doesn't make the slider invisible, instead it works fine with textfields. Do you know why?
I've also tried using property and synthesize but the result doesn't change
---Interface
#interface Controller : NSWindowController{
IBOutlet NSTextField *labelContrast;
IBOutlet NSTextField *valueContrast;
IBOutlet NSSlider *sliderContrast;
}
- (IBAction)changeContrast:(id)sender;
#end
---Implementation
#import "Controller.h"
#interface Controller ()
#end
#implementation Controller
- (void)windowDidLoad {
[super windowDidLoad];
[labelContrast setHidden:YES];
[valueContrast setHidden:YES];
[sliderContrast setHidden:YES];
}
- (IBAction)changeContrast:(id)sender {
}
#end
If you declare pointers for your objects but you don't allocate them yourself you can not set anything that is not there. Your setHidden: method calls end up in local void aka nowhere.
programmatically
If you go the coding way you would declare, allocate and initiate first. With
labelContrast = [NSTextField alloc] initWithFrame:NSMakeRect(x,y,w,h)];
before you call other methods of the object class (Or similar init methods).After that you can call methods on the object.
Almost all objects inherit an according -(instancetype)init or -(instancetype)initWith... method you can use. If there is no init method given, then there is another way to do it right and the moment to start reading again :).
With Interface Builder
By typing IBOutlet or IBAction in front of a declaration you just give a hint for Xcodes Interface Builder where to hook up and apply onto (associate) the placed object in (nib,xib,storyboard) with its object ID in the XML scheme to a reference in code.
So after you connected your code and the object in IB you can avoid allocation and init process for that particular object. Be aware that calling methods on objects that are not instanced yet is not working. Which is why you code in - (void)windowDidLoad, -(void)viewDidLoad or -(void)awakeFromNib because those are the methods that get called after "IB" has done its job for you.
Related
Simple problem, I have defined a UIImageView, called bigImageView in a UIViewController using the storyboard,
It's declared in the h file of that UIViewController as follows:
#property (retain, nonatomic) IBOutlet UIImageView *bigImageView;
on my appDelegate I init the UIViewController as follows:
imageViewController = [storyboard instantiateViewControllerWithIdentifier:#"chosenImageController"];
this calls initWithCoder on my UIViewController m file:
-(id)initWithCoder:(NSCoder *)aDecoder
{
self = [super initWithCoder:aDecoder];
if (self) {
// Custom initialization
}
return self;
}
This function is only called once so there's no double init.
However, later, when I check my bigImageView pointer, it's still nil.
Isn't the init supposed to allocate memory to it?
I think that's why when I try to set this UIImageview to hold a UIImage it doesn't display the image
Thanks
It's all working how it's meant to. First every object in the nib/storyboard gets alloc/init called on them, then all the connections are made, and then viewDidLoad is called.
You need to wait for - (void)viewDidLoad to be called on your controller, and then bigImageView should be set. If it's not set then you did something wrong in the storyboard.
init methods are not responsible for allocating any memory. All memory is allocated by the alloc method which is always called before init. Alloc will fill all your instance variables with nil/NULL/0 values, and then init gives the chance to assign initial values to each one (based on the contents of the NSCoder object usually, but it's up to you to decide what should be done).
For IB outlets however, those are setup by the nib loading process after init.
EDIT:
// ViewControllerA.m:
imageViewController = [storyboard instantiateViewControllerWithIdentifier:#"chosenImageController"];
imageViewController.image = imageToShow;
// ViewControllerB.h
#property (retain) NSImage *image;
#property (retain, nonatomic) IBOutlet UIImageView *bigImageView;
// ViewControllerB.m
- (void)viewDidLoad
{
self.bigImageView.image = self.image;
[super viewDidLoad];
}
You don't need to define initWithCoder, since you have no custom logic in there. I would delete that boilerplate code.
Here is what I would check:
In the storyboard, ensure that the class of the view controller is set properly.
Ensure that the outlet is hooked up properly in the storyboard by looking for a circle near your #property. It should be a filled in circle, not an outline of a circle.
Make sure you are reading the value only after viewDidLoad is called. Apple's only guarantee is that the outlet is set after this method call.
Update: It sounds like you want to access the image view before the view is loaded. There is no way to do this. One hack is to call viewController.view which will force the view to load, but there are many reasons why you should not do this.
A better approach would be to implement properties on your view controller which work for both when the view is not loaded and when the view is loaded. You can see an example of an elegant solution in this question. Notice how if the view is loaded, the photographerLabel will get set via the didSet method. On the other hand, if the view is not loaded, it will get set via the viewDidLoad method. For an Objective-C version of that code or for more details, see the linked video in that question.
I'm trying to find a solution that allows me to get keydown events in a view controller.
I do not believe a view controller is part of the responder chain by default.
I would appreciate a sample of how to go about this. I have had trouble finding documentation I can understand on how to add the VC to the responder chain and get the events.
Thanks.
Miek
You can implement something like this:
-(void) globalKeyDown: (NSNotification *) notification
method in your controller class, and then just add the observer in awakeFromNib...or loadView method of your controller
- (void)awakeFromNib
{
[[NSNotificationCenter defaultCenter] addObserver:self
selector:#selector(globalKeyDown:)
name:#"my_keyEvent"
object:nil];
}
in your view class
-(void)keyDown:(NSEvent *)theEvent
{
[[NSNotificationCenter defaultCenter] postNotificationName:#"my_keyEvent"
object:theEvent
userInfo:#{#"sender":self}];
}
NSViewController doesn't have a default way to do this. However, you can achieve this through subclassing NSView. Here is the basic idea:
If you create a view subclass, you can set your view controller as a delegate and create a delegate method that handles events.
You can declare a delegate protocol at the start of your view header.
Import your view header in the view controller header. Declare the view controller as implementing the protocol.
In your view keyDown send the event to the delegate.
Another way is to post NSNotifications in your keyDown and observe and handle the notifications in your view controller. Other ways also exist.
NSView Subclass with Delegate method explained
Here is the delegation example with an NSView subclass which declares a protocol in its header with one required method, an IBOutlet id property that conforms to the protocol. The NSView subclass calls this method to its delegate whenever it wants to. If the delegate is nil, that's fine in Cocoa. Also note, tangentially, I have added IB_Designable and IBInspectable to the view's color properties. This allows setting them in IB and requires the 10.10 SDK.
The app delegate has imported the NSView subclass in the AppDelegate.m implementation file and adopted the protocol in the AppDelegate class extension at the top of the .m file. In the #implementation section it also implements the method.
Also note in IB, I added an NSView to the window, then set its class to the custom NSView subclass in the inspector. Finally, I set its eventDelegate IBOutlet to the AppDelegate proxy in IB.
Custom NSView subclass interface
#import <Cocoa/Cocoa.h>
#protocol EventDelegatingViewDelegate <NSObject>
- (void)view:(NSView *)aView didHandleEvent:(NSEvent *)anEvent;
#end
IB_DESIGNABLE
#interface EventDelegatingView : NSView
#property IBOutlet id<EventDelegatingViewDelegate> eventDelegate;
#property IBInspectable NSColor *fillColor;
#property IBInspectable NSColor *strokeColor;
#end
Custom NSView subclass implementation
#import "EventDelegatingView.h"
#implementation EventDelegatingView
- (BOOL)acceptsFirstMouse:(NSEvent *)theEvent {return YES;}
// The following two methods allow a view to accept key input events. (literally they say, YES, please send me those events if I'm the center of attention.)
- (BOOL)acceptsFirstResponder {return YES;}
- (BOOL)canBecomeKeyView {return YES;}
- (void)drawRect:(NSRect)dirtyRect {
[super drawRect:dirtyRect];
[self.fillColor set];
NSRectFill(self.bounds);
[self.strokeColor set];
NSFrameRect(self.bounds);
}
// Notice these don't do anything but call the eventDelegate. I could do whatever here, but I didn't.
// The NICE thing about delgation is, the originating object stays in control of it sends to its delegate.
// However, true to the meaning of the word 'delegate', once you pass something to the delegate, you have delegated some decision making power to that delegate object and no longer have any control (if you did, you might have a bad code smell in terms of the delegation design pattern.)
- (void)mouseDown:(NSEvent *)theEvent
{
[self.eventDelegate view:self didHandleEvent:theEvent];
}
- (void)keyDown:(NSEvent *)theEvent
{
[self.eventDelegate view:self didHandleEvent:theEvent];
}
#end
App Delegate (and eventDelegate!) implementation
#import "AppDelegate.h"
// Import the view class and if there were other files that implement any protocol
#import "EventDelegatingView.h"
// Declare protocol conformance (or more accurately, not only import that protocol interface, but say you're going to implement it so the compiler can nag you if you don't)
#interface AppDelegate ()<EventDelegatingViewDelegate>
#property (weak) IBOutlet NSWindow *window;
// For the simplest demo app we don't even need this property.
#property IBOutlet EventDelegatingView *eventDelegatingView;
#end
#implementation AppDelegate
- (void)applicationDidFinishLaunching:(NSNotification *)aNotification {
// Insert code here to initialize your application
}
- (void)applicationWillTerminate:(NSNotification *)aNotification {
// Insert code here to tear down your application
}
// It's all right here. Receive a reference to a view and a reference to an event, then do as you like with them.
#pragma mark - EventDelegatingViewDelegate
- (void)view:(NSView *)aView didHandleEvent:(NSEvent *)anEvent
{
NSString *interestingEventNote;
switch (anEvent.type) {
case NSKeyDown:
case NSKeyUp:
{
// For simplicity we won't try to figure out the modifier keys here.
interestingEventNote = [NSString stringWithFormat:#"%# key was pressed.", anEvent.charactersIgnoringModifiers];
}
break;
case NSLeftMouseDown:
{
interestingEventNote = [NSString stringWithFormat:#"Left mouse down at point %# in window", NSStringFromPoint(anEvent.locationInWindow)];
}
break;
default:
break;
}
NSLog(#"%# %# aView=%#\n note=%#", self, NSStringFromSelector(_cmd), aView, interestingEventNote?interestingEventNote:#"Nothing worth noting");
}
#end
And that's it for the power of delegation. Basically it's callbacks of sorts and is a great way to build a class to enable it to defer something elsewhere as wanted. Moving some business logic to the right place in a fairly lazy and open and loosely coupled way.
NOTE: My code example shows using the app delegate. But the principal is the same. A view controller is little more than a delegate and you can add as much or as little as you like.
In your NSWidow (or NSWindowController) class implementation set your view controller as the first responder:
[self makeFirstResponder:yourViewControllerInstance];
You must, of course, make your NSViewController class return YES to the acceptsFirstResponder message.
I'm new to objective-c and, maybe I haven't grassped the concept of delegation very clearly yet, but i hope to do it by using it. I'm trying to implement a delegation in my app.
Idea is that i have class TableViewController which has NSMutableArray used for TableView initialization. I need to reinitialize this Array from my DropDown class. I'v tried to do that using delegation but failed to do it yet, maybe there is something wrong with it. I could pass TableViewController to DropDown class and edit the table via object. But i'd like to get it done using delegation.
Here is my TableViewController.h
#protocol TableViewControllerdelegate;
#interface TableViewController : UIViewController<UITableViewDataSource,UITableViewDelegate,MFMessageComposeViewControllerDelegate>
{
ControllerType controllerType;
}
#property (retain, nonatomic) IBOutlet UITableView *tableView;
#property (retain, nonatomic) NSMutableArray *dataArray;
#property (retain, nonatomic) NSArray *imageArray;
- (id)initWithNibName:(NSString *)nibNameOrNil bundle:(NSBundle *)nibBundleOrNil andType:(ControllerType)type;
- (void)sendSMS: (NSString *) sms;
#end;
Here is my DropDown.h
#import "TableViewController.h"
#interface DropDownExample : UITableViewController <VPPDropDownDelegate, UIActionSheetDelegate> {
#private
VPPDropDown *_dropDownSelection;
VPPDropDown *_dropDownSelection1;
VPPDropDown *_dropDownSelection2;
VPPDropDown *_dropDownSelection3;
VPPDropDown *_dropDownSelection4;
VPPDropDown *_dropDownDisclosure;
VPPDropDown *_msg;
VPPDropDown *_dropDownCustom;
NSIndexPath *_ipToDeselect;
}
+ (bool) uncheck:(UITableViewCell *) cell andData:(NSString *) data;
- (void)reloadData;
#end
And this is how i try to edit my tableview object array
TableViewController *newControll = (TableViewController*)[UIApplication sharedApplication].delegate;
NSMutableArray *arrayWithInfo = [[NSMutableArray alloc] initWithObjects:AMLocalizedString(#"Status", nil),AMLocalizedString(#"Call", nil),AMLocalizedString(#"Location", nil),AMLocalizedString(#"Control", nil),AMLocalizedString(#"Sim", nil),AMLocalizedString(#"Object", nil),AMLocalizedString(#"Info", nil),nil];
newControll.dataArray = arrayWithInfo;
[arrayWithInfo release];
[newControll.tableView reloadData];
I get it running, but it get's '-[AppDelegate setDataArray:]: unrecognized selector sent to instance after reaching this code.
OK, I am not sure if I got this right but it finally clicked for me what delegation is and why I need it. Hopefully you'll understand too once you read through my scenario.
History
Previously, in my UITabBar app, I wanted to show a custom form view overlaid on top of my view controller to enter name and email.
Later I also needed to show the same custom overlay on top of another view controller on another tab.
At the time I didn't really know what delegation was for, so the first method I used to tackle this problem was NSNotificationCenter. I duplicated the same code to my second view controller and hooked it up to a button press event.
On pressing a button on the second view controller on another tab, it certainly showed my custom overlay, just like my first view controller.
However, this is where the problem starts.
The Problem
I needed to close my custom form view. So using NSNotificationCenter, I posted a notification and the listener callback method for the notification was told to close my custom view.
The problem was, using NSNotificationCenter, all listeners both in my first tab and my second tab responded to the posted notification and as a result, instead of closing just the custom form view overlaid on top of my second view controller, it closed ALL my custom view, regardless of where the custom view was opened from.
What I wanted was when I tap on the "X" button to close my custom form view, I only want it to close it for that single instance of the custom view, not all the other ones I had opened.
The Solution: Delegation
This is where it finally clicked for me - delegation.
With delegation, I tell each instance of my custom form view who the delegate was, and if I was to tap on the "X" button to close my custom view, it only close it for that single instance that was opened, all the other view controllers were untouched.
Some Code
Right, down to some code.
Not sure if this is the best way to do it (correct me if I am wrong) but this is how I do it:
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// Custom Form class .h file
// ------------------------------------------------------------
#protocol MyCustomFormDelegate <NSObject>
// if you don't put a #optional before any method, then they become required
// in other words, you must implement these methods
-(void)sendButtonPressed;
-(void)closeButtonPressed;
// example: these two methods here does not need to be implemented
#optional
-(void)optionalMethod1;
-(void)optioinalMethod2;
#end
#interface MyCustomFormView : UIView
{
...
id<MyCustomFormDelegate> delegate;
}
...
#property (nonatomic, retain) id<MyCustomFormDelegate> delegate;
#end
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// Custom Form class .m file
// ------------------------------------------------------------
...
#implementation TruckPickerView
#synthesize delegate;
-(id)initWithFrame:(CGRect)frame
{
self = [super initWithFrame:frame];
if(self)
{
...
[btnSend addTarget:self selector:#selector(sendEmail) forControlEvent:UIControlEventTouchUpInside];
...
[btnClose addTarget:self selector:#selector(closeForm) forControlEvent:UIControlEventTouchUpInside];
}
return self;
}
-(void)sendEmail
{
// code sends email
...
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// tell the delegate to execute the delegate callback method
//
// note: the implementation will be defined in the
// view controller (see below)
// ------------------------------------------------------------
[delegate sendButtonPressed];
}
-(void)closeForm
{
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// tell the delegate to execute the delgate callback method
//
// note: the implementation will be defined in the
// view controller (see below)
// ------------------------------------------------------------
[delegate closeButtonPressed];
}
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// view controller .h file
// ------------------------------------------------------------
#import "MyCustomFormView.h"
// conform to our delegate protocol
#interface MyViewController <MyCustomFormDelegate>
{
...
// create a single instance of our custom view
MyCustomFormView *customForm;
}
#property (nonatomic, retain) MyCustomFormView *customForm;
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// view controller .m file
// ------------------------------------------------------------
#synthesize customForm;
-(void)viewDidLoad
{
customForm = [[MyCustomFormView alloc] initWithFrame:....];
// tell our custom form this view controller is the delegate
customForm.delegate = self;
// only show the custom form when user tap on the designated button
customForm.hidden = YES;
[self.view addSubview:customForm];
}
-(void)dealloc
{
...
[customForm release];
[super dealloc];
}
// helper method to show and hide the custom form
-(void)showForm
{
customForm.hidden = NO;
}
-(void)hideForm
{
customForm.hidden = YES;
}
// ------------------------------------------------------------
// implement the two defined required delegate methods
// ------------------------------------------------------------
-(void)sendButtonPressed
{
...
// email has been sent, do something then close
// the custom form view afterwards
...
[self hideForm];
}
-(void)closeButtonPressed
{
// Don't send email, just close the custom form view
[self hideForm];
}
You get that error, because (as the error says) you're sending a setDataArray: message to your app delegate (the AppDelegate class).
[UIApplication sharedApplication].delegate;
This will return the delegate of you app. There are a couple of ways to find out which class is your app's delegate, but usually it's called AppDelegate (as in your case) and it's implementing the UIApplicationDelegate protocol too.
You can't simply cast that to a completely different class. If your app delegate has an ivar or property of type TableViewController you have to use accessors to get it. If it's a property, you can use the dot notation. If it's an ivar, you can either implement a getter method that returns the ivar, or make it a property instead.
// assuming your app delegate has a TableViewController property called myTableViewController.
AppDelegate *appDelegate = (AppDelegate *)[UIApplication sharedApplication].delegate;
TableViewController *tableViewController = appDelegate.myTableViewController;
This will fix the error, but your use of the delegate pattern is wrong too. I don't see where you're using any custom delegates. You forward declare a TableViewControllerdelegate protocol, but I don't see any declaration of it, or I don't see where you're trying to use it.
I'm coding an iPhone app.
Instead of writing all the code here, this is basicly what I want to do:
testViewController.m:
- (void)viewDidLoad { label.text=#"text"; }
This works.
Now I want to change the label text from the testAppDelegate file.
- (void)applicationDidBecomeActive:(UIApplication *)application {
testViewController *tvc=[[testViewController alloc] init];
tvc.label.text=#"another text";
[tvc release];
}
This isn't working!
How can I do this?
Thanks for all answers :)
In applicationDidBecomeActive you are creating a new instance of the view controller (this is what alloc / init) setting the label text in your new instance and then releasing it.
You need to be referring to the actual instance of your view controller that is on the screen. This is probably already referred to somewhere in your application delegate - is it the root view controller, for example? When is it created in the first place?
You may need to set a property on your application delegate to hold a reference to this view controller. The code you have is fine except that you are talking to a new controller instead of the one that is presented on the screen - assuming of course that your label is a property on the view controller.
In .h file: define property:
#property (nonatomic, retain) UILabel *label;
In .m file: implement set/get methods for that propery (for example, automatically):
#synthesize label;
Declare testViewController as outlet in testAppDelegate.h, perform its binding in xib, probably MainMenu.xib, now try changing value of its label in -
- (void)applicationDidBecomeActive:(UIApplication *)application
I'm sorry! Should have specified more what I was doing. Now I've learned.
I had a tab-bar view controller template.
I solved this by adding in the delegate .h file:
#class testViewController
#property(nonatomic,retain) UIViewController *testViewcontroller;
and in the .m file:
#synthesize testViewController=_tvc;
- (void)applicationDidBecomeActive:(UIApplication *)application
{
_tvc.label.text=#"another text";
}
And of course imported the testViewController.h and declearing the methods there too.
Thanks for all your responses :)
I want to accomplish touching a UIButton and having code run in a different class than the owner.
I realize I can do a touchUpInside to the button's owner (ClassA) and then call the method inside ClassB that I want called, but is there any way to expedite this?
ideas:
have ClassB be the delegate for the ClassA->UIButton
set the touchUpInside call in programming to used the function inside ClassB
I'm not sure how to accomplish either of these ideas :( Input is mas appreciated!
One option is to set the button up using
[myButton addTarget:yourOtherClass action:#selector(mySelector:) forControlEvents:UIControlEventTouchUpInside];
but this is a bit dangerous because target is not retained so you could send the message to a deallocated object.
You could instead set up a protocol
MyController.h
#protocol MyControllerDelegate
- (void)myController:(MyController *)controller buttonTapped:(UIButton *)button;
#end
#interface MyController : UIViewController
#property (nonatomic, assign) id <MyControllerDelegate> delegate;
- (IBAction)buttonTapped:(UIButton *)button;
#end
Then in your implementation
MyController.m
- (IBAction)buttonTapped:(UIButton *)button
{
if ([self.delegate respondsToSelector:#selector(myController:buttonTapped:)]) {
[self.delegate myController:self buttonTapped:button];
}
}
As the method defined in the protocol was not optional I could have instead done a check for (self.delegate) to make sure it is set instead of respondsToSelector.