So this is related to this question I asked not too long ago and I'm trying to figure out if the solution I came up with is feasible, I would try it but I'm not really sure how to start
Load a TableViewController on an animated UIView
So what I wanted to do is to have two different results when a animated uiview pops up.
I have two buttons. One button will have a uitable that shows a label and 3 icons, while the other will show one label and a different icon.
I'm using storyboards (since that's the only way I know how to do it) to connect a "Custom UitableCell" to the table.
I dragged two uitableviews and force them to be hidden from the view when viewdidload happens. So I place a prototype cell on each uitableview specific to what objects I need displayed when it gets loaded.
Now I add the uitabledelegate and datasource on the viewcontroller file.
Now my issue is, if I do this on the viewcontroller, can it only communicate to one uitable and not two? (eg. didselectrow, numberofrowsinsection, cellforrowatindexpath, etc) Or can I do and "if else" to figure out which uitable view it is communicating (or loading info) with?
This is the tutorial I followed for th uiview animation
Thoughts?
Yes, your view controller can be the data source and delegate of two uitableview or more.
Make your two UITableView properties of the view controller. Then in your delegate and data source methods, you can check the tableView parameter passed in each method, for example:
- (NSInteger)numberOfSectionsInTableView:(UITableView *)tableView
{
// Return the number of sections.
if (tableView == self.firstTableView) {
return 1; //for the firstTableView
} else {
return 2; //this will be for the secondTableView
}
}
Do the same for your other data source and delegate methods.
For my registration form, I am currently using a UITableView which isn't fullscreen and I add cells programmatically through hardcoding the datasource methods. By the time the whole class got very complex and huge.
Pastebin link
The cells are custom and have a UILabel and a UITextfield. Now one of the cells should have a button instead of the textfield. This would make the whole thing more complex then it should be, in my opinion. So my thought was using the static feature of the tableview in the storyboard. But this requiers a UITableViewController, if I use one the TableView is always fullscreen. Is there a way to se the static feature without a fullscreen TableView??
If you have a fixed number of cells, the static table view controller is a good option. Instead of implementing the datasource methods, as you mentioned, you can include each input field as an IB outlet.
If you want a static table view controller that is not full-width, embed the table view controller inside a container view.
For example, create a new view controller, add a container view object w/ the desired width in this new view controller, and then connect your static table view controller to the container view.
Note that the static table view controller becomes a childViewController of the enclosing view controller. You can facilitate access to the textFields from the enclosing view controller w/ a weak property to the textFields w/in the child view controller.
- (UITextField *)surnameTextField
{
UITextField *textField;
// reference childController that is initiated via containerView
if ([[self.childViewControllers lastObject] isKindOfClass:[NameViewController class]])
{
NameViewController *nameVC = [self.childViewControllers lastObject];
textField = nameVC.surnameTextField;
}
return textField;
}
You do not need to use a UITableViewController. Just drag and drop a table view from the control palette onto a UIViewController in your storyboard. Size and position it how you want to and add any other controls to the UIViewController that you need.
In the property sheet for the UITableView set the content type to 'Static Cells' then define your cells how you want them.
I'm trying to use storyboards in an app I'm working on. In the app there are Lists and Users and each contains a collection of the other (members of a list, lists owned by a user). So, accordingly, I have ListCell and UserCell classes. The goal is to have those be re-usable throughout the app (ie, in any of my tableview controllers).
That's where I'm running into a problem.
How do I create a custom tableview cell in the storyboard that can be re-used in any view controller?
Here are the specific things I've tried so far.
In Controller #1, added a prototype cell, set the class to my UITableViewCell subclass, set the reuse id, added the labels and wired them to the class's outlets. In Controller #2, added an empty prototype cell, set it to the same class and reuse id as before. When it runs, the labels never appear when the cells are shown in Controller #2. Works fine in Controller #1.
Designed each cell type in a different NIB and wired up to the appropriate cell class. In storyboard, added an empty prototype cell and set its class and reuse id to refer to my cell class. In controllers' viewDidLoad methods, registered those NIB files for the reuse id. When shown, cells in both controllers were empty like the prototype.
Kept prototypes in both controllers empty and set class and reuse id to my cell class. Constructed the cells' UI entirely in code. Cells work perfectly in all controllers.
In the second case I suspect that the prototype is always overriding the NIB and if I killed the prototype cells, registering my NIB for the reuse id would work. But then I wouldn't be able to setup segues from the cells to other frames, which is really the whole point of using storyboards.
At the end of the day, I want two things: wire up tableview based flows in the storyboard and define cell layouts visually rather than in code. I can't see how to get both of those so far.
As I understand it, you want to:
Design a cell in IB which can be used in multiple storyboard scenes.
Configure unique storyboard segues from that cell, depending on the scene the cell is in.
Unfortunately, there is currently no way to do this. To understand why your previous attempts didn't work, you need to understand more about how storyboards and prototype table view cells work. (If you don't care about why these other attempts didn't work, feel free to leave now. I've got no magical workarounds for you, other than suggesting that you file a bug.)
A storyboard is, in essence, not much more than a collection of .xib files. When you load up a table view controller that has some prototype cells out of a storyboard, here's what happens:
Each prototype cell is actually its own embedded mini-nib. So when the table view controller is loading up, it runs through each of the prototype cell's nibs and calls -[UITableView registerNib:forCellReuseIdentifier:].
The table view asks the controller for the cells.
You probably call -[UITableView dequeueReusableCellWithIdentifier:]
When you request a cell with a given reuse identifier, it checks whether it has a nib registered. If it does, it instantiates an instance of that cell. This is composed of the following steps:
Look at the class of the cell, as defined in the cell's nib. Call [[CellClass alloc] initWithCoder:].
The -initWithCoder: method goes through and adds subviews and sets properties that were defined in the nib. (IBOutlets probably get hooked up here as well, though I haven't tested that; it may happen in -awakeFromNib)
You configure your cell however you want.
The important thing to note here is there is a distinction between the class of the cell and the visual appearance of the cell. You could create two separate prototype cells of the same class, but with their subviews laid out completely differently. In fact, if you use the default UITableViewCell styles, this is exactly what's happening. The "Default" style and the "Subtitle" style, for example, are both represented by the same UITableViewCell class.
This is important: The class of the cell does not have a one-to-one correlation with a particular view hierarchy. The view hierarchy is determined entirely by what's in the prototype cell that was registered with this particular controller.
Note, as well, that the cell's reuse identifier was not registered in some global cell dispensary. The reuse identifier is only used within the context of a single UITableView instance.
Given this information, let's look at what happened in your above attempts.
In Controller #1, added a prototype cell, set the class to my
UITableViewCell subclass, set the reuse id, added the labels and wired
them to the class's outlets. In Controller #2, added an empty
prototype cell, set it to the same class and reuse id as before. When
it runs, the labels never appear when the cells are shown in
Controller #2. Works fine in Controller #1.
This is expected. While both cells had the same class, the view hierarchy that was passed to the cell in Controller #2 was entirely devoid of subviews. So you got an empty cell, which is exactly what you put in the prototype.
Designed each cell type in a different NIB and wired up to the
appropriate cell class. In storyboard, added an empty prototype cell
and set its class and reuse id to refer to my cell class. In
controllers' viewDidLoad methods, registered those NIB files for the
reuse id. When shown, cells in both controllers were empty like the
prototype.
Again, this is expected. The reuse identifier is not shared between storyboard scenes or nibs, so the fact that all of these distinct cells had the same reuse identifier was meaningless. The cell you get back from the tableview will have an appearance that matches the prototype cell in that scene of the storyboard.
This solution was close, though. As you noted, you could just programmatically call -[UITableView registerNib:forCellReuseIdentifier:], passing the UINib containing the cell, and you'd get back that same cell. (This isn't because the prototype was "overriding" the nib; you simply hadn't registered the nib with the tableview, so it was still looking at the nib embedded in the storyboard.) Unfortunately, there's a flaw with this approach — there's no way to hook up storyboard segues to a cell in a standalone nib.
Kept prototypes in both controllers empty and set class and reuse id
to my cell class. Constructed the cells' UI entirely in code. Cells
work perfectly in all controllers.
Naturally. Hopefully, this is unsurprising.
So, that's why it didn't work. You can design your cells in standalone nibs and use them in multiple storyboard scenes; you just can't currently hook up storyboard segues to those cells. Hopefully, though, you've learned something in the process of reading this.
In spite of the great answer by BJ Homer I feel like I have a solution. As far as my testing goes, it works.
Concept: Create a custom class for the xib cell. There you can wait for a touch event and perform the segue programmatically. Now all we need is a reference to the controller performing the Segue. My solution is to set it in tableView:cellForRowAtIndexPath:.
Example
I have a DetailedTaskCell.xib containing a table cell which I'd like to use in multiple table views:
There is a custom class TaskGuessTableCell for that cell:
This is where the magic happens.
// TaskGuessTableCell.h
#import <Foundation/Foundation.h>
#interface TaskGuessTableCell : UITableViewCell
#property (nonatomic, weak) UIViewController *controller;
#end
// TashGuessTableCell.m
#import "TaskGuessTableCell.h"
#implementation TaskGuessTableCell
#synthesize controller;
- (void)touchesEnded:(NSSet *)touches withEvent:(UIEvent *)event
{
NSIndexPath *path = [controller.tableView indexPathForCell:self];
[controller.tableView selectRowAtIndexPath:path animated:NO scrollPosition:UITableViewScrollPositionNone];
[controller performSegueWithIdentifier:#"FinishedTask" sender:controller];
[super touchesEnded:touches withEvent:event];
}
#end
I have multiple Segues but they all have the same name: "FinishedTask". If you need to be flexible here, I suggest to add another property.
The ViewController looks like this:
// LogbookViewController.m
#import "LogbookViewController.h"
#import "TaskGuessTableCell.h"
#implementation LogbookViewController
- (void)viewDidLoad
{
[super viewDidLoad]
// register custom nib
[self.tableView registerNib:[UINib nibWithNibName:#"DetailedTaskCell" bundle:[NSBundle mainBundle]] forCellReuseIdentifier:#"DetailedTaskCell"];
}
- (UITableViewCell *)tableView:(UITableView *)tableView cellForRowAtIndexPath:(NSIndexPath *)indexPath
{
TaskGuessTableCell *cell;
cell = [tableView dequeueReusableCellWithIdentifier:#"DetailedTaskCell"];
cell.controller = self; // <-- the line that matters
// if you added the seque property to the cell class, set that one here
// cell.segue = #"TheSegueYouNeedToTrigger";
cell.taskTitle.text = [entry title];
// set other outlet values etc. ...
return cell;
}
- (void)prepareForSegue:(UIStoryboardSegue *)segue sender:(id)sender
{
if([[segue identifier] isEqualToString:#"FinishedTask"])
{
// do what you have to do, as usual
}
}
#end
There might be more elegant ways to achieve the same but - it works! :)
I was looking for this and I found this answer by Richard Venable. It works for me.
iOS 5 includes a new method on UITableView: registerNib:forCellReuseIdentifier:
To use it, put a UITableViewCell in a nib. It has to be the only root
object in the nib.
You can register the nib after loading your tableView, then when you
call dequeueReusableCellWithIdentifier: with the cell identifier, it
will pull it from the nib, just like if you had used a Storyboard
prototype cell.
BJ Homer has given an excellent explanation of what is going on.
From a practical standpoint I'd add that, given you can't have cells as xibs AND connect segues, the best one to choose is having the cell as a xib - transitions are far easier to maintain than cell layouts and properties across multiple places, and your segues are likely to be different from your different controllers anyway. You can define the segue directly from your table view controller to the next controller, and perform it in code. .
A further note is that having your cell as a separate xib file prevents you being able to connect any actions etc. directly to the table view controller (I haven't worked this out, anyway - you can't define file's owner as anything meaningful). I am working around this by defining a protocol that the cell's table view controller is expected to conform to and adding the controller as a weak property, similar to a delegate, in cellForRowAtIndexPath.
Swift 3
BJ Homer gave an excellent explanation, It helps me understand the concept. To make a custom cell reusable in storyboard, which can be used in any TableViewController we have to mix the Storyboard and xib approach. Suppose we have a cell named as CustomCell which is to be used in the TableViewControllerOne and TableViewControllerTwo. I am making it in steps.
1. File > New > Click File > Select Cocoa Touch Class > click Next > Give Name Of your class(for example CustomCell) > select Subclass as UITableVieCell > Tick the also create XIB file checkbox and press Next.
2. Customize the cell as you want and set the identifier in attribute inspector for cell, here we ll set as CellIdentifier. This identifier will be used in your ViewController to identify and reuse the Cell.
3. Now we just have to register this cell in our ViewController viewDidLoad. No need of any initialization method.
4. Now we can use this custom cell in any tableView.
In TableViewControllerOne
let reuseIdentifier = "CellIdentifier"
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
tableView.register(UINib(nibName: "CustomCell", bundle: nil), forCellReuseIdentifier: reuseIdentifier)
}
func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView, cellForRowAt indexPath: IndexPath) -> UITableViewCell {
let cell = tableView.dequeueReusableCell(withIdentifier:reuseIdentifier, for: indexPath) as! CustomCell
return cell!
}
I found a way to load the cell for the same VC, not tested for the segues. This could be a workaround for creating the cell in a separate nib
Let's say that you have one VC and 2 tables and you want to design a cell in storyboard and use it in both tables.
(ex: a table and a search field with a UISearchController with a table for results and you want to use the same Cell in both)
When the controller asks for the cell do this:
- (UITableViewCell *)tableView:(UITableView *)tableView cellForRowAtIndexPath:(NSIndexPath *)indexPath
{
static NSString * identifier = #"CELL_ID";
ContactsCell *cell = [self.YOURTABLEVIEW dequeueReusableCellWithIdentifier:identifier];
// Ignore the "tableView" argument
}
And here you have your cell from the storyboard
If I understand your question correctly, this is fairly easy. Create a UIViewController in your storyboard that will hold your prototype cells and create a static shared instance that loads itself from the storyboard. To handle view controller segues, use the manual segue outlet and trigger on table view delegate didSelectRow (the manual segue outlet is the middle icon at the top of the view controller in the storyboard, in between 'First Responder' and 'Exit').
XCode 12.5, iOS 13.6
// A cell with a single UILabel
class UILabelCell: UITableViewCell {
#IBOutlet weak var label: UILabel!
}
// A cell with a signle UISwitch
class UISwitchCell: UITableViewCell {
#IBOutlet weak var uiSwitch: UISwitch!
}
// The TableViewController to hold the prototype cells.
class CellPrototypeTableViewController: UITableViewController {
// Loads the view controller from the storyboard
static let shared: CellPrototypeTableViewController = {
let storyboard = UIStoryboard(name: "Main", bundle: nil)
let viewController = storyboard.instantiateViewController(withIdentifier: "cellProtoypeVC") as! CellPrototypeTableViewController
viewController.loadViewIfNeeded() // Make sure to force view controller to load the view!
return viewController
}()
// Helper methods to deque the cells
func dequeUILabeCell() -> UILabelCell {
let cell = self.tableView.dequeueReusableCell(withIdentifier: "uiLabelCell") as! UILabelCell
return cell
}
func dequeUISwitchCell() -> UISwitchCell {
let cell = self.tableView.dequeueReusableCell(withIdentifier: "uiSwitchCell") as! UISwitchCell
return cell
}
}
Use:
class MyTableViewController: UITableViewController {
override func numberOfSections(in tableView: UITableView) -> Int {
return 1
}
override func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView, numberOfRowsInSection section: Int) -> Int {
return 2
}
override func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView, cellForRowAt indexPath: IndexPath) -> UITableViewCell {
// Dequeue the cells from the shared instance
switch indexPath.row {
case 0:
let uiLabelCell = CellPrototypeTableViewController.shared.dequeUILabeCell()
uiLabelCell.label.text = "Hello World"
return uiLabelCell
case 1:
let uiSwitchCell = CellPrototypeTableViewController.shared.dequeUISwitchCell()
uiSwitchCell.uiSwitch.isOn = false
return uiSwitchCell
default:
fatalError("IndexPath out of bounds")
}
}
// Handling Segues
override func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView, didSelectRowAt indexPath: IndexPath) {
switch indexPath.row {
case 0: self.performSegue(withIdentifier: "first", sender: nil)
case 1: self.performSegue(withIdentifier: "second", sender: nil)
default:
fatalError("IndexPath out of bounds")
}
}
}
This one is probably something simple, still learning the ins-and-outs on this but I've run out of searches for this one with no available answer.
I've got a UIViewController with several elements displayed on it, one such element is a UITableView. The UITableView has it's own class and is allocated in the UIViewControllers viewWillAppear
- (void)viewWillAppear:(BOOL)animated
{
UITableView *insideTableView = [[UITableView alloc] init];
tableView.delegate = insideTableView;
tableView.dataSource = insideTableView;
}
Everything is working fine in regards to the tableview. Today I am experimenting with a few additions, one of which is a new view popup on cell selection within that tableview.
Inside my TableView Class, I have the following:
- (void)tableView:(UITableView *)tableView didSelectRowAtIndexPath:(NSIndexPath *)indexPath
{
NSLog(#"Cell Pressed, Present View");
PopupView *popupView = [[PopupView alloc] initWithNibName:#"PopupView" bundle:nil];
popupView.modalTransitionStyle = UIModalTransitionStyleCoverVertical;
[self presentModalViewController:popupView animated:YES];
}
Now it gets called fine, verified by the NSLog, however the view doesn't appear. I know the problem is related to the fact that I want PopUp to appear over the TableViews Parent rather than itself.
I'm just not sure how to properly call it in this instance.
The delegate is a UIViewController which doesn't have its view property set, which is why presentModalViewController:: doesn't work.
You need the view controller containing the table view to present the modal view controllers, but note that that view controller is not the parent of the table view delegate. This is because you have no view controller hierarchy in place.
The easiest way to fix this is to put those methods inside the view controller whose view contains the table view. Alternatively the table view delegate needs to hold a reference to the view controller so it can call presentModalViewController:: on it.
The latter approach can lead to retain cycle, so you have to use a non-retaining reference. The nicest implementation is the delegate pattern.
Also, you don't want to do the instantiation in viewWillAppear: because that can be called multiple times during the lifecycle of a view controller. Put the code in viewDidLoad and balance it in dealloc. Right now you are leaking memory every time your view appears, which when your modal view controller is working will be every time the modal view controller is presented and dismissed.
I have a sectioned tableview with a plist wich is an array filled with dictionaries.
In my app all sections and cells are shown on the first view.
But now I need to change it to look like this: sections have to become cells(with names of sections). When you press this cell the cells contained in section have appear.
Is there a way to do it without too much rewriting the code?
Thanks and sorry for the noob question :o)
I understand, that you still want to use one tableview, where cells are hidden for all sections except one. In that case you can do this:
Implement -tableView:headerForSection: and place a button on the view that you will return. Write the sections number on the buttons tag. Add an action to the button with parameter (UIButton *)sender: `-(void) headerPressed:(UIButton *)sender
You need to implement -tableView:heightforHeaderInSection: as-well.
-(void) headerPressed:(UIButton *)sender writes the senders tag to a member integer and reloads the tableview.
in -tableview:numberOfRowsInSection: you return 0 if the sections int is not equal to the member integer you saved. If it is equal, return the number of rows in that section.
You will need to create two table view classes. One for the one that holds the section names, and the other that holds the rows of each section. In the first one, retrieve the section names from the plist and populate the rows in the table accordingly. Then in the - (void)tableView:(UITableView *)tableView didSelectRowAtIndexPath:(NSIndexPath *)indexPath method you need to push another view controller onto the navigation stack(something like this-provided in the template code):
// Navigation logic may go here. Create and push another view controller.
<#DetailViewController#> *detailViewController = [[<#DetailViewController#> alloc] initWithNibName:#"<#Nib name#>" bundle:nil];
// ...
// Pass the selected object to the new view controller.
[self.navigationController pushViewController:detailViewController animated:YES];
[detailViewController release];
Then for the other table view class you populate it by reading in the info from the plist that corresponds to the tapped section. Hope this helps.