Android – Difference between “@id/” and “@+id/” in Android

androidandroid-xml

What is the diffirence between the @id/ and @+id/?

In @+id/ the plus symbol + instructs to create a new resource name and add in to the R.java file but what about @id/? From the documentation of ID: when referencing an Android resource ID, you do not need the plus symbol, but must add the android package namespace, like so:

android:id="@android:id/list"

But in the image below Eclipse doesn't suggest any kind of @android:id/.

Image showing the suggestion for the @/id and @+/id

Are @id/ and @android:id/ the same?

Best Solution

you refer to Android resources , which are already defined in Android system, with @android:id/.. while to access resources that you have defined/created in your project, you use @id/..

More Info

As per your clarifications in the chat, you said you have a problem like this :

If we use android:id="@id/layout_item_id" it doesn't work. Instead @+id/ works so what's the difference here? And that was my original question.

Well, it depends on the context, when you're using the XML attribute of android:id, then you're specifying a new id, and are instructing the parser (or call it the builder) to create a new entry in R.java, thus you have to include a + sign.

While in the other case, like android:layout_below="@id/myTextView" , you're referring to an id that has already been created, so parser links this to the already created id in R.java.

More Info Again

As you said in your chat, note that android:layout_below="@id/myTextView" won't recognize an element with id myTextViewif it is written after the element you're using it in.

Related Solutions

Android – How to close/hide the Android soft keyboard programmatically

You can force Android to hide the virtual keyboard using the InputMethodManager, calling hideSoftInputFromWindow, passing in the token of the window containing your focused view.

// Check if no view has focus:
View view = this.getCurrentFocus();
if (view != null) {  
    InputMethodManager imm = (InputMethodManager)getSystemService(Context.INPUT_METHOD_SERVICE);
    imm.hideSoftInputFromWindow(view.getWindowToken(), 0);
}

This will force the keyboard to be hidden in all situations. In some cases, you will want to pass in InputMethodManager.HIDE_IMPLICIT_ONLY as the second parameter to ensure you only hide the keyboard when the user didn't explicitly force it to appear (by holding down the menu).

Note: If you want to do this in Kotlin, use: context?.getSystemService(Context.INPUT_METHOD_SERVICE) as InputMethodManager

Kotlin Syntax

// Only runs if there is a view that is currently focused
this.currentFocus?.let { view ->
    val imm = getSystemService(Context.INPUT_METHOD_SERVICE) as? InputMethodManager
    imm?.hideSoftInputFromWindow(view.windowToken, 0)
}

Android – the difference between “px”, “dip”, “dp” and “sp”

From the Android Developer Documentation:

px
> Pixels - corresponds to actual pixels on the screen.
in
> Inches - based on the physical size of the screen.
> 1 Inch = 2.54 centimeters
mm
> Millimeters - based on the physical size of the screen.
pt
> Points - 1/72 of an inch based on the physical size of the screen.
dp or dip
> Density-independent Pixels - an abstract unit that is based on the physical density of the screen. These units are relative to a 160 dpi screen, so one dp is one pixel on a 160 dpi screen. The ratio of dp-to-pixel will change with the screen density, but not necessarily in direct proportion. Note: The compiler accepts both "dip" and "dp", though "dp" is more consistent with "sp".
sp
> Scaleable Pixels OR scale-independent pixels - this is like the dp unit, but it is also scaled by the user's font size preference. It is recommended you use this unit when specifying font sizes, so they will be adjusted for both the screen density and the user's preference. Note, the Android documentation is inconsistent on what sp actually stands for, one doc says "scale-independent pixels", the other says "scaleable pixels".

From Understanding Density Independence In Android:

Density Bucket	Screen Density	Physical Size	Pixel Size
ldpi	120 dpi	0.5 x 0.5 in	0.5 in * 120 dpi = 60x60 px
mdpi	160 dpi	0.5 x 0.5 in	0.5 in * 160 dpi = 80x80 px
hdpi	240 dpi	0.5 x 0.5 in	0.5 in * 240 dpi = 120x120 px
xhdpi	320 dpi	0.5 x 0.5 in	0.5 in * 320 dpi = 160x160 px
xxhdpi	480 dpi	0.5 x 0.5 in	0.5 in * 480 dpi = 240x240 px
xxxhdpi	640 dpi	0.5 x 0.5 in	0.5 in * 640 dpi = 320x320 px

Unit	Description	Units Per Physical Inch	Density Independent?	Same Physical Size On Every Screen?
px	Pixels	Varies	No	No
in	Inches	1	Yes	Yes
mm	Millimeters	25.4	Yes	Yes
pt	Points	72	Yes	Yes
dp	Density Independent Pixels	~160	Yes	No
sp	Scale Independent Pixels	~160	Yes	No

More info can be also be found in the Google Design Documentation.

Best Solution

Related Solutions

Android – How to close/hide the Android soft keyboard programmatically

Android – the difference between “px”, “dip”, “dp” and “sp”

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