am 28cb6150: am 7096a17e: am 718c7484: am f0f5efbe: Android Training: Run in a Background Service

page.title=Defining and Launching the Query

trainingnavtop=true

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<div id="tb-wrapper">

  <div id="tb">

<h2>This lesson teaches you to</h2>

<ol>

    <li>

        <a href="#DefineLaunch">Define and Launch the Query</a>

    </li>

</ol>

  </div>

</div>

<p>

    To perform a query, create the {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}, set up its

    query, and pass it to the loader framework. From then on, the framework manages everything.

    It runs the query on a background thread, returns the results to the foreground, and

    watches for changes to the data associated with the query.

</p>

<p>

    Pass a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} to the loader framework in

    your implementation of

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onCreateLoader onCreateLoader()}.

    The loader framework calls this method when you <i>create</i> a loader by calling

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager#initLoader initLoader()}. You can create

    a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} anywhere,

    but the preferred way is to create it in

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onCreateLoader onCreateLoader()},

    because this defers creation until the object is actually needed.

</p>

<p>

    Notice that {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager#initLoader initLoader()} will only

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onCreateLoader onCreateLoader()}

    if the {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} doesn't already exist; otherwise, it

    re-uses the existing {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}. The loader framework

    tracks {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} instance using the <code>id</code>

    value passed to {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager#initLoader initLoader()}.

</p>

<h2 id="DefineLaunch">Define and Launch the Query</h2>

<p>

    To create a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} and define its

    query at the same time, call the constructor

{@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader#CursorLoader(Context, Uri, String[], String, String[], String)

    CursorLoader(context, uri, projection, selection, selectionArgs, sortOrder)}. The

    <code>context</code> and <code>uri</code> arguments are required, but the others are optional.

    To use the default value for an optional argument, pass in <code>null</code>. The

    {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} runs the query against the

    {@link android.content.ContentProvider} identified by <code>uri</code>, just as if you had

    called {@link android.content.ContentResolver#query ContentResolver.query()} with the same

    arguments.

</p>

<p>

    For example:

</p>

<pre>

public Loader<Cursor> onCreateLoader(int loaderID, Bundle bundle)

{

    /*

     * Takes action based on the ID of the Loader that's being created

     */

    switch (loaderID) {

        case URL_LOADER:

            /*

             * Return a new CursorLoader

             */

            return new CursorLoader(

                this,                           // Context

                DataProviderContract.IMAGE_URI, // Provider's content URI

                PROJECTION,                     // Columns to return

                null,                           // Return all rows

                null,                           // No search arguments

                null);                          // Default search order

        default:

            // An invalid id was passed in

            return null;

    }

}

</pre>

page.title=Handling the Results

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<!-- This is the training bar -->

<div id="tb-wrapper">

  <div id="tb">

<h2>This lesson teaches you to</h2>

<ol>

  <li>

    <a href="#HandleResults">Handle Query Results</a>

  </li>

  <li>

    <a href="#HandleReset">Clear Out Old Data</a></li>

</ol>

  </div>

</div>

<p>

    {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} returns its query results to your

    implementation of

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onLoadFinished

    LoaderCallbacks.onLoadFinished()}, in the form of a {@link android.database.Cursor}. In the

    callback, you can update your data display, do further processing on the

    {@link android.database.Cursor} data, and so forth.

</p>

<p>

    When the loader framework detects changes to data associated with the query,

    it resets the {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}, closes the current

    {@link android.database.Cursor}, and then invokes your implementation of

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onLoaderReset onLoaderReset()}.

    Use this callback to delete references to the current {@link android.database.Cursor}; when the

    loader framework destroys the {@link android.database.Cursor}, you won't have outstanding

    references that cause memory leaks.

</p>

<h2 id="HandleFinished">Handle Query Results</h2>

<p>

    The following two snippets are an example of displaying the results of a query, using a

    {@link android.widget.ListView} backed by a

    {@link android.support.v4.widget.SimpleCursorAdapter}.

</p>

<p>

    The first snippet shows the {@link android.widget.ListView} and

    {@link android.support.v4.widget.SimpleCursorAdapter}:

</p>

<pre>

// Gets a handle to the Android built-in ListView widget

mListView = ((ListView) findViewById(android.R.id.list));

// Creates a CursorAdapter

mAdapter =

    new SimpleCursorAdapter(

    this,                   // Current context

    R.layout.logitem,       // View for each item in the list

    null,                   // Don't provide the cursor yet

    FROM_COLUMNS,           // List of cursor columns to display

    TO_FIELDS,              // List of TextViews in each line

    0                       // flags

);

// Links the adapter to the ListView

mListView.setAdapter(mAdapter);

</pre>

<p>

    The next snippet shows an implementation of

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onLoadFinished onLoadFinished()}

    that moves the query results in the returned {@link android.database.Cursor} to the

    {@link android.support.v4.widget.SimpleCursorAdapter}. Changing the

    {@link android.database.Cursor} in the

    {@link android.support.v4.widget.SimpleCursorAdapter} triggers a refresh of the

    {@link android.widget.ListView} with the new data:

</p>

<pre>

public void onLoadFinished(Loader<Cursor> loader, Cursor cursor)

{

    /*

     * Move the results into the adapter. This

     * triggers the ListView to re-display.

     */

    mAdapter.swapCursor(cursor);

}

</pre>

<h2 id="HandleReset">Handle a Loader Reset</h2>

<p>

    The loader framework resets the {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} whenever the

    {@link android.database.Cursor} becomes invalid. This usually occurs because the data associated

    with the {@link android.database.Cursor} has changed. Before re-running the query,

    the framework calls your implementation of

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onLoaderReset onLoaderReset()}. In

    this callback, make sure to prevent memory leaks by deleting all references to the current

    {@link android.database.Cursor}. Once you return from

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks#onLoaderReset onLoaderReset()},

    the loader framework re-runs the query.

</p>

<p>

    For example:

</p>

<pre>

public void onLoaderReset(Loader<Cursor> loader)

{

    // Remove the reference to the current Cursor

    mAdapter.swapCursor(null);

}

</pre>

page.title=Loading Data in the Background

trainingnavtop=true

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<div id="tb-wrapper">

<div id="tb">

<!-- Required platform, tools, add-ons, devices, knowledge, etc. -->

<h2>Dependencies and prerequisites</h2>

<h3>Dependencies</h3>

<ul>

    <li>

        Android 1.6 or later

    </li>

</ul>

<h3>Prerequisites</h3>

<ul>

    <li>

        <a href="{@docRoot}training/basics/firstapp/index.html">Building Your First App</a> class

    </li>

    <li>

        <a href="{@docRoot}training/basics/activity-lifecycle/index.html">

        Managing the Activity Lifecycle</a> class

    </li>

</ul>

<!-- related docs (NOT javadocs) -->

<h2>You should also read</h2>

<ul>

    <li>

        <a href="{@docRoot}guide/components/loaders.html">Loaders</a>

    </li>

    <li>

        <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/data/data-storage.html#db">Using Databases</a>

    </li>

    <li>

<a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/providers/content-provider-basics.html">Content Provider Basics</a>

    </li>

</ul>

</div>

</div>

<p>

    A {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} runs a query against a

    {@link android.content.ContentProvider} on a background thread and returns a

    {@link android.database.Cursor} to the main thread.

</p>

<p>

    {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} has these advantages over alternate ways of

    running a query:

</p>

<dl>

    <dt>

        Query on a background thread

    </dt>

    <dd>

        A {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} query runs asynchronously on a

        background thread, so it doesn't cause "Application Not Responding" (ANR) errors on the UI

        thread. {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} creates and starts the

        background thread; all you have to do is initialize the loader framework and handle the

        results of the query.

    </dd>

    <dt>

        Automatic re-query

    </dt>

    <dd>

        A {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} automatically runs a new query when

        the loader framework detects that the data underlying the {@link android.database.Cursor}

        has changed.

    </dd>

    <dt>

        Simple API

    </dt>

    <dd>

        The {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} API provides the

        query framework and cursor monitoring that you would have to define yourself if you used

        {@link android.os.AsyncTask}.

    </dd>

</dl>

<p>

    A {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} is limited in that the query must be

    against a {@link android.net.Uri} and must return a {@link android.database.Cursor}. Because of

    this, a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} can only run a query against a

    {@link android.content.ContentProvider}.

</p>

<p>

    This class describes how to define and use a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}.

    Examples in this class use the {@link android.support.v4 v4 support library} versions of

    classes, which support platforms starting with Android 1.6.

</p>

<h2>Lessons</h2>

<dl>

    <dt>

        <strong><a href="setup-loader.html">Setting Up the Loader</a></strong>

    </dt>

    <dd>

        Learn how to set up an {@link android.app.Activity} that inherits the necessary classes

        for running a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} and returning results.

    </dd>

    <dt>

        <strong><a href="define-launch-query.html">Defining and Launching the Query</a></strong>

    </dt>

    <dd>

        Learn how to perform a query against a {@link android.content.ContentProvider} using

        a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}.

    </dd>

    <dt>

        <strong>

        <a href="handle-results.html">Handling the Results</a>

        </strong>

    </dt>

    <dd>

        Learn how to handle the {@link android.database.Cursor} returned from the query, and how

        to remove references to the current {@link android.database.Cursor} when the loader

        framework re-sets the {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}.

    </dd>

</dl>

page.title=Setting Up the Loader

trainingnavtop=true

startpage=true

@jd:body

<!-- This is the training bar -->

<div id="tb-wrapper">

  <div id="tb">

<h2>This lesson teaches you to</h2>

<ol>

    <li>

        <a href="#AddExtensions">Extend an Activity</a>

    </li>

    <li>

        <a href="#GetLoader">Retrieve a LoaderManager</a>

    </li>

    <li>

        <a href="#InitializeLoader">Initialize the Loader Framework</a>

    </li>

</ol>

  </div>

</div>

<p>

    You create a {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader} within a

    <b>loader framework</b>. To set up the framework, you implement the

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks LoaderCallbacks<Cursor>}

    as part of an {@link android.app.Activity}. In addition, to provide compatibility

    compatible with platform versions starting with Android 1.6, you must extend the

    {@link android.app.Activity} with the {@link android.support.v4.app.FragmentActivity} class.

</p>

<p class="note">

    <strong>Note:</strong> A {@link android.support.v4.app.Fragment} is not a prerequisite for

    {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}. As a convenience, the support library class

    {@link android.support.v4.app.FragmentActivity} contains the fragment and the loader frameworks,

    but they are completely independent of each other.

</p>

<p>

    Before you can use the loader framework, you need to initialize it. To do this, retrieve

    a {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager} object and call its

    {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager#initLoader initLoader()} method.

</p>

<p>

    If you do use one or more {@link android.support.v4.app.Fragment} objects in an

    {@link android.app.Activity}, the {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager} you retrieve is

    available to all of them.

</p>

<h2 id="AddExtensions">Extend an Activity</h2>

<p>

    To set up an {@link android.app.Activity} subclass to contain a

    {@link android.support.v4.content.CursorLoader}, extend the subclass with

    must extend {@link android.support.v4.app.FragmentActivity}, which provides the loader

    framework, and implement the {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks

    LoaderCallbacks<Cursor>} interface, which specifies method signatures that the loader

    framework uses to interact with the {@link android.app.Activity}.

</p>

<p>

    For example:

</p>

<pre>

public class DisplayActivity extends FragmentActivity

        implements LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks<Cursor>

</pre>

<h2 id="GetLoader">Retrieve a LoaderManager</h2>

<p>

    To get an instance {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager} for use in your

    {@link android.app.Activity}, call

    {@link android.support.v4.app.FragmentActivity#getSupportLoaderManager

    FragmentActivity.getSupportLoaderManager()} at the beginning of the

    {@link android.app.Activity#onCreate onCreate()} method. For example:

</p>

<pre>

private LoaderManager mLoaderManager;

public void onCreate() {

...

mLoaderManager = this.getSupportLoaderManager();

</pre>

<h2 id="InitializeLoader">Initialize the Loader Framework</h2>

<p>

    Once you have the {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager} object, initialize

    it by calling {@link android.support.v4.app.LoaderManager#initLoader initLoader()}. For

    example:

</p>

<pre>

// CursorLoader instance identifier

public static final int URL_LOADER = 0;

...

// Initializes the CursorLoader

getSupportLoaderManager().initLoader(URL_LOADER, null, this);

</pre>