Simple List UI using the Blackberry SDK

Sample ObjectListField

You want to develop complex lists on the Blackberry? By far, the easiest way to do this is to use the ObjectListField.

Here is an ObjectListField that displays a graphic and a text message:

import net.rim.device.api.system.Display;
import net.rim.device.api.ui.Graphics;
import net.rim.device.api.ui.component.ListField;
import net.rim.device.api.ui.component.ObjectListField;

public class MainMenuList extends ObjectListField {

int _offset = Display.getWidth() / 2;
int _height = 27;

public void drawListRow(ListField list, Graphics g, int i, int y, int w) {
MainMenuData rowData = (MainMenuData)get(list, i);
setRowHeight(_height);
// I want a gray highlight, not the default blackberry blue.
if(list.getSelectedIndex() == i)
{
g.setColor(0xCFCFCF);
g.fillRect(0,(i*_height),Display.getWidth(),_height);
g.setColor(0x000000);
}
else {
g.setColor(0xFFFFFF);
g.fillRect(0,(i*_height),Display.getWidth(),_height);
g.setColor(0x000000);
}
g.drawBitmap(_offset - 80, y, rowData.getBitmap().getWidth(), rowData.getBitmap().getHeight(), rowData.getBitmap(), 0, 0);
g.drawText(rowData.getText(), _offset - 60 + rowData.getBitmap().getWidth(), y);
}

}


And here is the setup, inside of a class that extends MainScreen:


MainMenuData mmr1 = new MainMenuData("Friends", Bitmap.getBitmapResource("friends.png"));
MainMenuData mmr2 = new MainMenuData("Public", Bitmap.getBitmapResource("world.png"));
MainMenuData mmr3 = new MainMenuData("Popular", Bitmap.getBitmapResource("toprated.png"));
MainMenuData mmr4 = new MainMenuData("Me", Bitmap.getBitmapResource("me.png"));
MainMenuData mmr5 = new MainMenuData("Options", Bitmap.getBitmapResource("options.png"));

MainMenuData[] items = new MainMenuData[] { mmr1, mmr2, mmr3, mmr4, mmr5 };
list.set(items);

add(list);

That’s it.

ObjectListField seems to be overlooked in favor of extending ListField, but to my mind this is much easier to implement.  And when time is money, sometimes easier is best.