What is a View?

Confused About A View in Android?

View Class

● View Class is just a UI component● Just treat the sub-package name in the Android

SDK as being labeled UI components

ViewGroup

● ViewGroup also an UI component but not a view

Layout Classes

● Yes, again not a view but UI components● Tiring of this game yet?

Widget Classes

● Its a specialized UI control but again its not a view

The XML Layout file

● Its a configuration file for some UI components but again is NOT A VIEW

What IS A VIEW?!!!

● A View in the Application Architecture Patterns is a Contextual Meaning Entity

● You form the contextual meaning from how the

UI components are used in the Controllers

Activity ViewController

● If you have a plain old Activity than that viewController indicates two possible contextual meanings of View

● The Whole Screen as View● The PopUp dialogs as other Views

FragmentActivity ViewController

● In its contextual meaning contains no VIEWs● The fragments its loading point to the

contextual

meaning of Views for the application

Fragment Mini-ViewController

● Indicates that the contextual meaning of View for the application is the section of screen it controls in the form of the UI components its loading

Conclusion

● A sign of a quality software engineer is the proper use of OOP terminology.

● Referring to Views as concrete classes shows a lack of understanding of the power of OOP.

● Part of the power of OOP is that the patterns have

the View as a contextual meaning rather than something just concrete.

● Saying a XML layout configuration file is a View is like stating that a XML java Bean configuration file is a Java Bean. Wise Up People