Multiple Choice Searchable ListView

Question

OK I have a multiple choice ListView that works fine. I check the boxes for the contacts (held in a String[]) and can return the values fine. Because some people have a bunch of contacts I wanted to create a search bar kind of like the stock one for the Android phone book. I created an EditText and aligned it above my list. I found the filtering code here on StackOverflow and it works wonderfully.

My Problem:

When you filter someones name out, and you select the name, when you either backspace from the EditText or continue typing, the correct position of the name you selected is not saved. For example, if I start typing "Adam" and get to "Ada" and select it, if I backspace to type in "Carol", whatever position "Ada" was at is selected. It gathers the place that "Adam" was at from the click (Let's say 2) and when the list is restored checks that position (2) even though Adam is not there anymore. I need a way to gather the name.. then when the list is restored or searched again, the NAME Adam is checked and not the POSITION Adam was previously at. I have absolutely no ideas other than creating tons of Arrays and could really use some help. Below is some of the code I'm using:

    @Override
      public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        setContentView(R.layout.contacts_list);


        myListView = (ListView)findViewById(android.R.id.list);
        search_EditText = (EditText) findViewById(R.id.search_EditText);
        search_EditText.addTextChangedListener(filterTextWatcher);

        adapter = new ArrayAdapter<String>(this, android.R.layout.simple_list_item_multiple_choice, ContactsList); 
        setListAdapter(adapter);

        myListView.setItemsCanFocus(false);
        getListView().setChoiceMode(2);
        myListView.setTextFilterEnabled(true);
        myListView.setFastScrollEnabled(true);
        myListView.invalidate();
}

    private TextWatcher filterTextWatcher = new TextWatcher() {
        public void afterTextChanged(Editable s) {

        }

        public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int count,
                int after) {

        }

        public void onTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int before,
                int count) {

            adapter.getFilter().filter(s);

        }

    };

Judicatory

Did you manage to keep the checked items state with filters? – Condyle

@JonasAlves I posted my sketchy solution. It might not work for what you need it for, and it was originally written for SDK 7 (I wrote it quite a while ago) but you might find it useful – Judicatory

Is there any better solution already? This topic is pretty old. – Samathasamau

Answer 1

I never ended up finding a better method than the one I am going to list below. I do not use this code much anymore, and if there is a better solution, I hope someone has it posted somewhere.

What I ended up doing was creating an ArrayList to hold the selected names. If the name is selected, the name is pushed into the ArrayList, and if it is unchecked, it is popped from the list. When afterTextChanged is selected, the list is iterated through and the names are checked if they are currently listed in the adapter. When you finish with the selection process and want to continue, I clear the EditText to clear the filter, therefore populating the complete list in the ListView and setting all of the contacts to selected if they exist in the ArrayList.

Note, I use a custom adapter for a list of contacts that only list names, so this solution may get more confusing if you use other types of data, and I look at this method as a hacked solution:

/** Used for filter **/
private TextWatcher filterTextWatcher = new TextWatcher() {

    public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int count, int after) {

        ListView listview = getListView();

        SparseBooleanArray checked = listview.getCheckedItemPositions();
        for (int i = 0; i < ContactsList.length; i++) {
            if (checked.get(i) == true) {
                Object o = getListAdapter().getItem(i);
                String name = o.toString();
                // if the arraylist does not contain the name, add it
                if (selected.contains(name)){ 
                    // Do Nothing
                } else {
                    selected.add(name);
                }
            }
        }           
    } //<-- End of beforeTextChanged

    public void onTextChanged(CharSequence s, int start, int before, int count) {           
        adapter.getFilter().filter(s);              
    } //<-- End of onTextChanged

    public void afterTextChanged(Editable s) {
        ListView listview = getListView();
        // Uncheck everything:
        for (int i = 0; i < listview.getCount(); i++){
            listview.setItemChecked(i, false);                  
        }

        adapter.getFilter().filter(s, new Filter.FilterListener() {
            public void onFilterComplete(int count) {
                adapter.notifyDataSetChanged();
                ListView listview = getListView();
                for (int i = 0; i < adapter.getCount(); i ++) {
                    // if the current (filtered) 
                    // listview you are viewing has the name included in the list,
                    // check the box
                    Object o = getListAdapter().getItem(i);
                    String name = o.toString();
                    if (selected.contains(name)) {
                        listview.setItemChecked(i, true);
                    } else {
                        listview.setItemChecked(i, false);
                    }
                }

            }
        });         
    } //<-- End of afterTextChanged

}; //<-- End of TextWatcher

You don't want to use Indexes when using the filters because index 1 might be something in one ListView, and it might be another ListView item when you change the filter.

Judicatory

Answer 2

You can create android project and add these files:

res/layout->list_row.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:background="#3c3c3c"
    android:orientation="horizontal"
    android:padding="8dp" >
    <ImageView
        android:id="@+id/contactimage"
        android:layout_width="48dp"
        android:layout_height="48dp"
        android:layout_marginRight="8dp"
        android:background="@drawable/ic_launcher"
        android:contentDescription="@string/app_name"
        android:scaleType="centerInside" />
    <RelativeLayout
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_centerInParent="true"
        android:layout_toLeftOf="@+id/contactcheck"
        android:layout_toRightOf="@+id/contactimage" >
        <TextView
            android:id="@+id/contactname"
            android:layout_width="match_parent"
            android:layout_height="wrap_content"
            android:singleLine="true"
            android:text="Contact Name"
            android:textColor="#000"
            android:textIsSelectable="false"
            android:textSize="18dp"
            android:textStyle="bold" />
        <TextView
            android:id="@+id/contactno"
            android:layout_width="match_parent"
            android:layout_height="wrap_content"
            android:layout_below="@+id/contactname"
            android:singleLine="true"
            android:text="09876543210"
            android:textColor="#2689e0"
            android:textIsSelectable="false"
            android:textSize="14dp" />
    </RelativeLayout>
    <CheckBox
        android:id="@+id/contactcheck"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_alignParentRight="true"
        android:layout_centerInParent="true"
        android:layout_marginLeft="8dp" />
</RelativeLayout>

res/layout->activity_main.xml

<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent" >
    <EditText
        android:id="@+id/input_search"
        android:layout_width="fill_parent"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_alignParentTop="true"
        android:layout_centerInParent="true"
        android:hint="Search Contacts"
        android:textSize="18dp" />
    <LinearLayout
        android:id="@+id/data_container"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        android:layout_above="@+id/ok_button"
        android:layout_below="@+id/input_search"
        android:gravity="center|top"
        android:orientation="vertical" />
    <Button
        android:id="@+id/ok_button"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
        android:layout_centerInParent="true"
        android:text=" OK "
        android:textSize="18dp" />
    <RelativeLayout
        android:id="@+id/pbcontainer"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        android:background="#55000000"
        android:clickable="true"
        android:visibility="gone" >
        <ProgressBar
            android:layout_width="wrap_content"
            android:layout_height="wrap_content"
            android:layout_centerInParent="true" />
    </RelativeLayout>
</RelativeLayout>

ContactObject.java

package com.multiselectlistexample;
public class ContactObject {

    private String contactName;
    private String contactNo;
    private String image;
    private boolean selected;
    public String getName() {
        return contactName;
    }
    public void setName(String contactName) {
        this.contactName = contactName;
    }
    public String getNumber() {
        return contactNo;
    }
    public void setNumber(String contactNo) {
        this.contactNo = contactNo;
    }
    public String getImage() {
        return image;
    }
    public void setImage(String image) {
        this.image = image;
    }
    public boolean isSelected() {
        return selected;
    }
    public void setSelected(boolean selected) {
        this.selected = selected;
    }
}

ContactsListClass.java

package com.multiselectlistexample;
import java.util.ArrayList;
public class ContactsListClass {
    public static final ArrayList<ContactObject> phoneList = new ArrayList<ContactObject>();
}

ContactsAdapter.java

package com.multiselectlistexample;
import java.io.ByteArrayInputStream;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.List;
import java.util.Locale;
import android.content.ContentUris;
import android.content.Context;
import android.database.Cursor;
import android.graphics.Bitmap;
import android.graphics.BitmapFactory;
import android.net.Uri;
import android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts;
import android.view.LayoutInflater;
import android.view.View;
import android.view.ViewGroup;
import android.widget.BaseAdapter;
import android.widget.CheckBox;
import android.widget.CompoundButton;
import android.widget.ImageView;
import android.widget.TextView;
public class ContactsAdapter extends BaseAdapter {
    Context mContext;
    LayoutInflater inflater;
    private List<ContactObject> mainDataList = null;
    private ArrayList<ContactObject> arraylist;
    public ContactsAdapter(Context context, List<ContactObject> mainDataList) {

        mContext = context;
        this.mainDataList = mainDataList;
        inflater = LayoutInflater.from(mContext);
        this.arraylist = new ArrayList<ContactObject>();
        this.arraylist.addAll(mainDataList);


    }
    static class ViewHolder {
        protected TextView name;
        protected TextView number;
        protected CheckBox check;
        protected ImageView image;
    }
    @Override
    public int getCount() {
        return mainDataList.size();
    }
    @Override
    public ContactObject getItem(int position) {
        return mainDataList.get(position);
    }
    @Override
    public long getItemId(int position) {
        return position;
    }
    public View getView(final int position, View view, ViewGroup parent) {
        final ViewHolder holder;
        if (view == null) {
            holder = new ViewHolder();
            view = inflater.inflate(R.layout.list_row, null);
            holder.name = (TextView) view.findViewById(R.id.contactname);
            holder.number = (TextView) view.findViewById(R.id.contactno);
            holder.check = (CheckBox) view.findViewById(R.id.contactcheck);
            holder.image = (ImageView) view.findViewById(R.id.contactimage);
            view.setTag(holder);
            view.setTag(R.id.contactname, holder.name);
            view.setTag(R.id.contactno, holder.number);
            view.setTag(R.id.contactcheck, holder.check);
            holder.check
                    .setOnCheckedChangeListener(new CompoundButton.OnCheckedChangeListener() {
                        @Override
                        public void onCheckedChanged(CompoundButton vw,
                                boolean isChecked) {
                            int getPosition = (Integer) vw.getTag();
                            mainDataList.get(getPosition).setSelected(
                                    vw.isChecked());
                        }
                    });
        } else {
            holder = (ViewHolder) view.getTag();
        }
        holder.check.setTag(position);

        holder.name.setText(mainDataList.get(position).getName());
        holder.number.setText(mainDataList.get(position).getNumber());

        if(getByteContactPhoto(mainDataList.get(position).getImage())==null){
            holder.image.setImageResource(R.drawable.ic_launcher);
        }else{
            holder.image.setImageBitmap(getByteContactPhoto(mainDataList.get(position).getImage()));
        }



        holder.check.setChecked(mainDataList.get(position).isSelected());
        return view;
    }
    public void filter(String charText) {
        charText = charText.toLowerCase(Locale.getDefault());
        mainDataList.clear();
        if (charText.length() == 0) {
            mainDataList.addAll(arraylist);
        } else {
            for (ContactObject wp : arraylist) {
                if (wp.getName().toLowerCase(Locale.getDefault())
                        .contains(charText)) {
                    mainDataList.add(wp);
                }
            }
        }
        notifyDataSetChanged();
    }
    public Bitmap getByteContactPhoto(String contactId) {
        Uri contactUri = ContentUris.withAppendedId(Contacts.CONTENT_URI, Long.parseLong(contactId));
        Uri photoUri = Uri.withAppendedPath(contactUri, Contacts.Photo.CONTENT_DIRECTORY);
        Cursor cursor = mContext.getContentResolver().query(photoUri,
                        new String[] {Contacts.Photo.DATA15}, null, null, null);
        if (cursor == null) {
            return null;
        }
        try {
            if (cursor.moveToFirst()) {
                byte[] data = cursor.getBlob(0);
                if (data != null) {
                    return BitmapFactory.decodeStream( new ByteArrayInputStream(data));
                }
            }
        } finally {
            cursor.close();
        }
        return null;
        }

}

MainActivity.java

package com.multiselectlistexample;
import java.util.Collections;
import java.util.Comparator;
import java.util.Locale;
import android.app.Activity;
import android.content.Context;
import android.database.Cursor;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.provider.ContactsContract;
import android.text.Editable;
import android.text.TextUtils;
import android.text.TextWatcher;
import android.view.View;
import android.view.View.OnClickListener;
import android.widget.AdapterView;
import android.widget.AdapterView.OnItemClickListener;
import android.widget.Button;
import android.widget.CheckBox;
import android.widget.EditText;
import android.widget.LinearLayout;
import android.widget.LinearLayout.LayoutParams;
import android.widget.ListView;
import android.widget.RelativeLayout;
import android.widget.Toast;
public class MainActivity extends Activity {
    Context context = null;
    ContactsAdapter objAdapter;
    ListView lv = null;
    EditText edtSearch = null;
    LinearLayout llContainer = null;
    Button btnOK = null;
    RelativeLayout rlPBContainer = null;
    @Override
    protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        context = this;
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
        rlPBContainer = (RelativeLayout) findViewById(R.id.pbcontainer);
        edtSearch = (EditText) findViewById(R.id.input_search);
        llContainer = (LinearLayout) findViewById(R.id.data_container);
        btnOK = (Button) findViewById(R.id.ok_button);
        btnOK.setOnClickListener(new OnClickListener() {
            @Override
            public void onClick(View arg0) {
                // TODO Auto-generated method stub
                getSelectedContacts();
            }
        });
        edtSearch.addTextChangedListener(new TextWatcher() {
            @Override
            public void onTextChanged(CharSequence cs, int arg1, int arg2,
                    int arg3) {
                // When user changed the Text
                String text = edtSearch.getText().toString()
                        .toLowerCase(Locale.getDefault());
                objAdapter.filter(text);
            }
            @Override
            public void beforeTextChanged(CharSequence arg0, int arg1,
                    int arg2, int arg3) {
                // TODO Auto-generated method stub
            }
            @Override
            public void afterTextChanged(Editable arg0) {
                // TODO Auto-generated method stub
            }
        });
        addContactsInList();
    }
    private void getSelectedContacts() {
        // TODO Auto-generated method stub
        StringBuffer sb = new StringBuffer();
        for (ContactObject bean : ContactsListClass.phoneList) {
            if (bean.isSelected()) {
                sb.append(bean.getName());
                sb.append(",");
            }
        }
        String s = sb.toString().trim();
        if (TextUtils.isEmpty(s)) {
            Toast.makeText(context, "Select atleast one Contact",
                    Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
        } else {
            s = s.substring(0, s.length() - 1);
            Toast.makeText(context, "Selected Contacts : " + s,
                    Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
        }
    }
    private void addContactsInList() {
        // TODO Auto-generated method stub
        Thread thread = new Thread() {
            @Override
            public void run() {
                showPB();
                try {
                    Cursor phones = getContentResolver().query(
                            ContactsContract.CommonDataKinds.Phone.CONTENT_URI,
                            null, null, null, null);
                    try {
                        ContactsListClass.phoneList.clear();
                    } catch (Exception e) {
                    }
                    while (phones.moveToNext()) {
                        String phoneName = phones
                                .getString(phones
                                        .getColumnIndex(ContactsContract.CommonDataKinds.Phone.DISPLAY_NAME));
                        String phoneNumber = phones
                                .getString(phones
                                        .getColumnIndex(ContactsContract.CommonDataKinds.Phone.NUMBER));
                        String phoneImage = phones
                                .getString(phones
                                        .getColumnIndex(ContactsContract.CommonDataKinds.Phone.CONTACT_ID));

                        ContactObject cp = new ContactObject();


                        cp.setName(phoneName);
                        cp.setNumber(phoneNumber);
                        cp.setImage(phoneImage);
                        ContactsListClass.phoneList.add(cp);
                    }
                    phones.close();
                    lv = new ListView(context);
                    lv.setLayoutParams(new LayoutParams(
                            LayoutParams.MATCH_PARENT,
                            LayoutParams.MATCH_PARENT));
                    runOnUiThread(new Runnable() {
                        @Override
                        public void run() {
                            // TODO Auto-generated method stub
                            llContainer.addView(lv);
                        }
                    });
                    Collections.sort(ContactsListClass.phoneList,
                            new Comparator<ContactObject>() {
                                @Override
                                public int compare(ContactObject lhs,
                                        ContactObject rhs) {
                                    return lhs.getName().compareTo(
                                            rhs.getName());
                                }
                            });
                    objAdapter = new ContactsAdapter(MainActivity.this,
                            ContactsListClass.phoneList);
                    lv.setAdapter(objAdapter);
                    lv.setOnItemClickListener(new OnItemClickListener() {
                        @Override
                        public void onItemClick(AdapterView<?> parent,
                                View view, int position, long id) {
                            CheckBox chk = (CheckBox) view
                                    .findViewById(R.id.contactcheck);
                            ContactObject bean = ContactsListClass.phoneList
                                    .get(position);
                            if (bean.isSelected()) {
                                bean.setSelected(false);
                                chk.setChecked(false);
                            } else {
                                bean.setSelected(true);
                                chk.setChecked(true);
                            }
                        }
                    });
                } catch (Exception e) {
                    e.printStackTrace();
                }
                hidePB();
            }
        };
        thread.start();
    }
    void showPB() {
        runOnUiThread(new Runnable() {
            @Override
            public void run() {
                // TODO Auto-generated method stub
                rlPBContainer.setVisibility(View.VISIBLE);
                edtSearch.setVisibility(View.GONE);
                btnOK.setVisibility(View.GONE);
            }
        });
    }
    void hidePB() {
        runOnUiThread(new Runnable() {
            @Override
            public void run() {
                // TODO Auto-generated method stub
                rlPBContainer.setVisibility(View.GONE);
                edtSearch.setVisibility(View.VISIBLE);
                btnOK.setVisibility(View.VISIBLE);
            }
        });
    }
}

AndroidManifest.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<manifest xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    package="com.multiselectlistexample"
    android:versionCode="1"
    android:versionName="1.0" >
    <uses-sdk
        android:minSdkVersion="8"
        android:targetSdkVersion="17" />
    <uses-permission android:name="android.permission.READ_CONTACTS" />

    <application
        android:allowBackup="true"
        android:icon="@drawable/ic_launcher"
        android:label="@string/app_name"
        android:theme="@style/AppTheme" >
        <activity
            android:name=".MainActivity"
            android:label="@string/app_name" >
            <intent-filter>
                <action android:name="android.intent.action.MAIN" />
                <category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
            </intent-filter>
        </activity>
    </application>
</manifest>

Anatol