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We just saw how to edit an existing TextView. Now let's see how to add a new one!
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- UI Overview
- View
- Supporting Different Densities - Excellent Video
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Okay, that first text
view was an easy one.
0:00
It was already on the screen.
0:02
Now let's see how we can add
another text view to our layout.
0:04
Let's go back to the design view.
0:08
On the left side of the design view,
we find the palate.
0:11
This has all sorts of Android controls
that we can drag and drop into the layout.
0:14
Inside the palette, components are split
into groups to make them easier to find.
0:21
For example the widgets group contains
some commonly used elements like buttons,
0:25
check boxes, and progress bars.
0:31
Everything here in the palette
is a type of Android view.
0:34
Now a view in the Android sense is
a rectangular area on the screen
0:38
that we can see and interact with.
0:42
These items in the palette are all
specialized types of views,
0:45
kind of like how a motorcycle is
a specialized type of vehicle.
0:49
Inside the text section, find the view
called TextView, and then click and
0:53
drag it onto the screen.
0:56
Moving the text view around,
we see blue arrows,
1:00
dotted lines, and borders that change
depending on where we move it.
1:03
This is because the text view
will be placed relative to these
1:08
different areas on the screen.
1:11
We want ours to be centered vertically,
but on the left hand side.
1:14
Let's move it until we see a horizontal
dotted line through the middle,
1:17
which means we are centered vertically.
1:21
And a green line on the left, which
means we are aligned to the left edge.
1:22
Let go of the mass button to drop it in,
and there we go.
1:28
Now lets change the text again
just like we did before.
1:31
Make sure the text is selected, and
then over in on properties pane lets
1:35
delete this text and
add a default fact to start with.
1:40
Let's say Ants stretch,
1:44
When they wake up in the morning,
and hit Enter.
1:49
Our text seems to be a little small for
the screen, but
1:57
we can fix that by changing
the text size property.
2:00
Over in the property pane, let's scroll
down and look for the text size property.
2:03
Once we've found it,
let's set it to 24sp and it Enter.
2:12
Perfect, now we can
actually read our fun fact.
2:18
The SP at the end stands for scale
independent pixels, which is a relative
2:21
unit that helps your text look the same on
devices with different screen sizes and
2:26
different pixel densities,
like regular versus HD screens.
2:30
One of the nice things about SP values and
why we use them for texts,
2:35
is that they also take into consideration
a users preferences for font sizes.
2:39
A user who has a system wide
preference for a larger font,
2:44
will have that preference
reflected in our app.
2:47
Now since we added a text
view here in the design view,
2:50
do you think it added
anything in the XML view.
2:53
Sure enough, we've got our new text view.
2:57
And down here at the bottom,
we have a new row called android:textSize.
3:00
And it's set to the value we entered.
3:05
We can also see that the text
property of this text view
3:07
is set to the fun fact we entered as well.
3:10
Let's get back to the design view.
3:15
And now that we know how to change
the text size, pause me for a moment and
3:19
change the text size of the did
you know text view to 24 SP.
3:23
Okay, did you pause and do it?
3:30
Last chance, all right, my turn.
3:33
I'll select the TextView,
find the textSize property,
3:35
type 24sp, and hit Enter.
3:41
Great job, see if you can figure out how
to drag a button onto the screen and
3:45
center it horizontally along the bottom.
3:49
I'll show you how I do
it in the next video.
3:52
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