Thread: Checking the Status of a checkbox

Hello,
I have essentially a preferences window with a bunch of boolean checkboxes. In another class, I need to check the status of these checkboxes (checked or unchecked), but I don't know how to do that since I can't make another instance of the class (as the boolean values wouldn't reflect those of the preferences runner class). Any help with this would be much appreciated! thanks!

By checkboxes, I assume you mean JCheckBox's. To access the status, pass a reference to the client class of the class which contains the JCheckBoxes. It then has access to them...if they are private variables, make public getters of their status.

Originally Posted by copeg

By checkboxes, I assume you mean JCheckBox's. To access the status, pass a reference to the client class of the class which contains the JCheckBoxes. It then has access to them...if they are private variables, make public getters of their status.

Well they're mCheckboxes (in android) and while I have public getters, I can only use them on an instance of a class. For example (the runner class is named Checkboxes)
Checkboxes c = new Checkboxes();

c.getStatus();


but in order to use these getters , i'd have to make a new instance like i did above, which wouldn't reflect their state in the other window. How can I pass this status to other classes?

 
public class TheOtherClass {
     private final Checkboxes checkers;
    public TheOtherClass(CheckBoxes c){
        this.checkers = c;
    }
    public void doCheck(){
        checkers.getStatus();///
    }
}

Then, when you instantiate TheOtherClass, you pass the reference to its constructor. If there are a few degrees of seperation between your CheckBoxes and TheOtherClass, you'll need to redesign you program a bit to be able to pass the reference.

preferences window with a bunch of boolean checkboxes

class prefWindow {
  // Define bunch of checkboxes
  mCheckbox cb1 = ...
 
  // Get the status of our cb1
  public boolean get_cb1() {
     return cb1.getStatus();
  } 
  ..

If the checkboxes are in prefWindow, the only way to access them is by having a reference to prefWindow. You wouldn't need to create a new instance. You would need a way to get a reference. Passing references is pretty common. What problem is there in your program?
Is prefWindow a singleton? IE there is only ever one instance at a time? Have a static getRef() method to return a reference to it.

Originally Posted by Norm

If the checkboxes are in prefWindow, the only way to access them is by having a reference to prefWindow. You wouldn't need to create a new instance. You would need a way to get a reference. Passing references is pretty common. What problem is there in your program?
Is prefWindow a singleton? IE there is only ever one instance at a time? Have a static getRef() method to return a reference to it.

Yes, there is only one instance at a time-the instance running in the onCreate() method of the Checkbox class. As you notice in the Checkbox class (i posted it above), I have a cbla. If I make this static, and then make a static getter method, can I still access the current state of each Checkboxes object, or will the values stay static?

You don't need to make all the variables and methods static. If you use the Singleton pattern, you only need a static varible to hold a reference to the one instance of the class and a static method to return that reference. The rest of the class would not be static.

will the values stay static

The values will change with the user's selections as usual.

so i did

private static CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter cbla;

and new method

public static getCbla()
{
return cbla;
}

however, the values of cbla never seem to change when called by other classes. It sees that the name is "restaurant" and everything, but it doesn't see that it is checked.

Originally Posted by Norm

How is does the code see if "it is checked"?
How does it see the name?

Where is cbla given a value? Does the code only give it a value one time?

I will post the code for the classes.

Here is Checkbox

public class Checkbox extends ListActivity {
    /** Called when the activity is first created. */
 
	private static CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter cbla;
	// Create CheckBox List Adapter, cbla
	private String[] items = {"Restaurants","Pizza", "Coffee Houses", "Bakeries", "Grocers", "Caterers/Chefs","Other" };
	// Array of string we want to display in our list
 
 
    @Override
    public void onCreate(Bundle icicle) {
        super.onCreate(icicle);
        setContentView(R.layout.checkbox);
 
        cbla = new CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter(this);
        for(int k=0; k<items.length; k++)
        {
        	cbla.addItem(new CheckBoxes(items[k], false));
        }  
        // Display it
        setListAdapter(cbla);
    }
 
    /* Remember the other methods of the CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter class!!!!
     * cbla.selectAll() :: Check all items in list
     * cbla.deselectAll() :: Uncheck all items
     */
 
    public static CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter getCbla()
    {
 
    	return cbla;
    }
}

Checkboxes

public class CheckBoxes implements Comparable<CheckBoxes> {
 
    private String mText = "";
    private boolean mChecked;    
    public CheckBoxes(String text, boolean checked) {
   	 /* constructor */ 
         mText = text;
         mChecked = checked;
    }
    public void setChecked(boolean value)
    {
   	 this.mChecked = value;
    }
    public boolean getChecked(){
   	 return this.mChecked;
    }
 
    public String getText() {
         return mText;
    }
 
    public void setText(String text) {
         mText = text;
    }
 
    /** Make CheckBoxifiedText comparable by its name */
    //@Override
    public int compareTo(CheckBoxes other) {
         if(this.mText != null)
              return this.mText.compareTo(other.getText());
         else
              throw new IllegalArgumentException();
    }
}

CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter

public class CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter extends BaseAdapter {
 
     /** Remember our context so we can use it when constructing views. */
     private Context mContext;
 
     private List<CheckBoxes> mItems = new ArrayList<CheckBoxes>();
 
     public CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter(Context context) {
          mContext = context;
     }
 
     public void addItem(CheckBoxes it) { mItems.add(it); }
 
     public void setListItems(List<CheckBoxes> lit) { mItems = lit; }
 
     /** @return The number of items in the */
     public int getCount() { return mItems.size(); }
 
     public CheckBoxes getItem(int position) { return mItems.get(position); }
 
     public void setChecked(boolean value, int position){
         mItems.get(position).setChecked(value);
     }
     public void selectAll(){
         for(CheckBoxes cboxtxt: mItems)
              cboxtxt.setChecked(true);
         /* Things have changed, do a redraw. */
         this.notifyDataSetInvalidated();
     }
     public void deselectAll()
     {
         for(CheckBoxes cboxtxt: mItems)
             cboxtxt.setChecked(false);
        /* Things have changed, do a redraw. */
        this.notifyDataSetInvalidated();
     }
 
     public boolean areAllItemsSelectable() { return false; }
 
     /** Use the array index as a unique id. */
     public long getItemId(int position) {
          return position;
     }
 
     /** @param convertView The old view to overwrite, if one is passed
      * @returns a CheckBoxifiedTextView that holds wraps around an CheckBoxifiedText */
     public View getView(int position, View convertView, ViewGroup parent){
          CheckBoxifiedTextView btv;
          if (convertView == null) {
               btv = new CheckBoxifiedTextView(mContext, mItems.get(position));
          } else { // Reuse/Overwrite the View passed
               // We are assuming(!) that it is castable!
        	   CheckBoxes src = mItems.get(position);
               btv = (CheckBoxifiedTextView) convertView;
               btv.setCheckBoxState(src.getChecked()); 
               btv = (CheckBoxifiedTextView) convertView;
               btv.setText(mItems.get(position).getText());
          }
          return btv;
     }
}

CheckboxifiedTextView

public class CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter extends BaseAdapter {
 
     /** Remember our context so we can use it when constructing views. */
     private Context mContext;
 
     private List<CheckBoxes> mItems = new ArrayList<CheckBoxes>();
 
     public CheckBoxifiedTextListAdapter(Context context) {
          mContext = context;
     }
 
     public void addItem(CheckBoxes it) { mItems.add(it); }
 
     public void setListItems(List<CheckBoxes> lit) { mItems = lit; }
 
     /** @return The number of items in the */
     public int getCount() { return mItems.size(); }
 
     public CheckBoxes getItem(int position) { return mItems.get(position); }
 
     public void setChecked(boolean value, int position){
         mItems.get(position).setChecked(value);
     }
     public void selectAll(){
         for(CheckBoxes cboxtxt: mItems)
              cboxtxt.setChecked(true);
         /* Things have changed, do a redraw. */
         this.notifyDataSetInvalidated();
     }
     public void deselectAll()
     {
         for(CheckBoxes cboxtxt: mItems)
             cboxtxt.setChecked(false);
        /* Things have changed, do a redraw. */
        this.notifyDataSetInvalidated();
     }
 
     public boolean areAllItemsSelectable() { return false; }
 
     /** Use the array index as a unique id. */
     public long getItemId(int position) {
          return position;
     }
 
     /** @param convertView The old view to overwrite, if one is passed
      * @returns a CheckBoxifiedTextView that holds wraps around an CheckBoxifiedText */
     public View getView(int position, View convertView, ViewGroup parent){
          CheckBoxifiedTextView btv;
          if (convertView == null) {
               btv = new CheckBoxifiedTextView(mContext, mItems.get(position));
          } else { // Reuse/Overwrite the View passed
               // We are assuming(!) that it is castable!
        	   CheckBoxes src = mItems.get(position);
               btv = (CheckBoxifiedTextView) convertView;
               btv.setCheckBoxState(src.getChecked()); 
               btv = (CheckBoxifiedTextView) convertView;
               btv.setText(mItems.get(position).getText());
          }
          return btv;
     }
}

then it is referenced in another class like this

if (Checkbox.getCbla().getItem(0).getText().equalsIgnoreCase("Restaurants"))
		{
			Log.v("TAG","it found the text atleast");
			if (Checkbox.getCbla().getItem(0).getChecked())
			{
				Log.v("TAG","it also noticed the box was checked.");
			}
 
		}

The first if statement returns true, but the getChecked() method never returns true.

Thanks!

If getChecked() never returns true, then "this.mChecked" must always be false when getChecked() is called.

Try debugging your code by adding println("mChecked=" + mChecked); at every place mChecked's values changes.
Then you'll see what that setting for the variable is before you call the getChecked() method.

Originally Posted by Norm

If getChecked() never returns true, then "this.mChecked" must always be false when getChecked() is called.

Try debugging your code by adding println("mChecked=" + mChecked); at every place mChecked's values changes.
Then you'll see what that setting for the variable is before you call the getChecked() method.

It seems to get the value initially and it stays constant. Is there some way i can make a listener to catch checking events?

Is there some way i can make a listener to catch checking events

Possibly. Read the API doc for the class to see if it can have listeners.

It seems to get the value initially and it stays constant

What value? Set or unset?

Originally Posted by Norm

Possibly. Read the API doc for the class to see if it can have listeners.


What value? Set or unset?

unset (false). That is the value it is initially set to

If you're still having a problem, can you make a small program that compiles and executes and demonstrates the problem.