How to specify the style of my widget in themes.xml file?

In my themes.xml file, I have added:

<resources>
<style name="MyTheme">
<item name="buttonStyleMyWidget">@style/MyWidget</item>
</style>
</resources>

But that does not pick up the theme by default. I have to add this

<MyWidget style="@style/MyToggleButton" android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content"/>

But if I just do this:

<MyWidget android:layout_width="wrap_content" android:layout_height="wrap_content"/>

I have added this in the manifest file:
<application android:label="@string/app_name" android:theme="@style/MyTheme">

My style does not get picked up.

silverburgh.meryl wrote:I have added this in the manifest file:
<application android:label="@string/app_name" android:theme="@style/MyTheme">

i think your theme should derive from the default style, because if you only specify a style for your buttons, the rest of the app won't have a look. I think that's why Android ignores your style.

Thank you. Mr. Snowflake.

Okay, if my theme needs to be inherit from an default theme. But if I add the line '<item name="android:textColor">#808</item>', it does show the right color for the text. It is just that my custom widget does not show the right style.

<resources>
<style name="MyTheme">
<item name="android:textColor">#808</item>
<item name="buttonStyleMyWidget">@style/MyWidget</item>
</style>
</resources>

Can you please tell me how to define the default 'style' my widget ('buttonStyleMyWidget')?

My application shows what I want if I do this:
<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/my_widget" style="@style/MyWidget" />

But I want this to work (without putting 'style' attribute everytime I use my custom widget:
<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/my_widget" />

And I would like to know how to specified that in my theme.

I really appreciate if you can help me resolve this problem.

silverburgh.meryl wrote:
But I want this to work (without putting 'style' attribute everytime I use my custom widget:
<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/my_widget" />

And I would like to know how to specified that in my theme.

I really appreciate if you can help me resolve this problem.

you have to declare declare-styleable in your attrs.xml file and then in your widget ctor you will need to call obtainStyledAttributes()

this should help: http://groups.google.com/group/android- ... 863e1718cc

Thank you very much for your help.

I already have in my attrs.xml:

<declare-styleable name="MyWidget">
<attr name="textX" format="integer" min="0"/>

</declare-styleable>
</resources>

Is that sufficient? What else do I need to add?

But if I want 'this to work (without putting 'style' attribute everytime I use my custom widget:
<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/my_widget" /> to work,

why I need to call obtainStyledAttributes() in MyWidget constructor? Since if I don't want to specify any style attribute value in my layout xml, the obtainStyledAttributes() should return nothing, right?

And even if I need to call obtainStyledAttributes() in MyWidget constructor, what are the parameters that I should used?

Thanks in advance for any more pointers.

silverburgh.meryl wrote:Thank you very much for your help.

I already have in my attrs.xml:

<declare-styleable name="MyWidget">
<attr name="textX" format="integer" min="0"/>

</declare-styleable>
</resources>

Is that sufficient? What else do I need to add?

ok, now in your MyWidget(Context context, AttributeSet attrs) constructor put the following:

TypedArray a = context.obtainStyledAttributes(attrs, R.styleable.MyWidget);
int textX = a.getInteger(R.styleable.MyWidget_textX, -1);
if (textX == -1) {
// textX was not specified in layout xml
}
a.recycle();

Thank you pskink,

I get that part to work.

My problem is android did not use the drawables that I define unless I put this in my layout.xml file:

i.e. this will pick up my defined drawable:
<LinearLayout>
<com.mycompany.MyWidget style="@style/MyWidget" />
</LinearLayout>

this does not.

I want a way to do that so that I don't need to add '@style/MyWidget' everytime I uses com.mycompany.MyWidget

Thank you for any pointers.

silverburgh.meryl wrote:
I want a way to do that so that I don't need to add '@style/MyWidget' everytime I uses com.mycompany.MyWidget

did you try to call super(context, attrs, R.style.MyWidget) in your widget construcor?

Thank you for your help.

Yes, I did

public MyWidget(Context context, AttributeSet attrSet) {
super(context, attrSet);
System.out.println ("133. calling (Context context, AttributeSet attrSet) n");

initToggleButton(context, attrSet, R.style.MyWidgetButton);
}

Strange thing is

this works:
<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/mywidget_button"
style="@style/MyWidget">

but this does not work:

<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/mywidget_button" >


And both cases call the same constructor. I have print statement, and I see the same constructor gets called in both cases.

Thank you for your help.

silverburgh.meryl wrote:super(context, attrSet);

you need to call 3 params super()

see Button.java line ~65 How its done for std Button widget

Thank you for your help again.

I did look at and follow that Button.java did. And follow to what they are doing there.

But My question now is why both

<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/mywidget_button"
style="@style/MyWidget">

<com.mycompany.MyWidget android:id="@+id/mywidget_button" >

call the same constructors:
public MyToggleWidget(Context context, AttributeSet attrSet) {
super(context, attrStet, R.attr.buttonStyleMyWidget);
}

Now, for both cases, they look the same. that is not what I want.
I would like that it has a 'default' style when I don't put 'style' attribute in the layout xml.
But then it should apply the style when there is one specified in the 'style' attribute.

Thank you in advance for more help.

silverburgh.meryl wrote:Now, for both cases, they look the same.

you defined buttonStyleMyWidget in your own theme, right?

try to set this theme in your manifest.xml

Got it.

THANK YOU very much.
I really appreciate your help as I has been struggling all week on this.