iOS - Get Info.plist file - iphone

I have a method that loads data from the Info.plist file of an app. Right now I'm hardcoding the name and the type, i.e. using pathForResourcehowever, this approach fails if the name of the plist file has changed, say MyAppSettings.plist Is there a way I can get the info.plist file that is being used regardless of the name? Thanks

The main App settings file, mostly named MyApp-info.plist, will al ways be named info.plist after the app is compiled and bundled.
There is also a short way to acces the info.plist:
NSNumber *version = [[[NSBundle mainBundle] infoDictionary] objectForKey:#"CFBundleVersion"];

Related

Writing values to a .plist more than once?

I have an iPhone App in the works, and I have a settings page within the app. I use a .plist to store the settings that the user picks, and then I read the data from the .plist later. This is not the -Info.plist that comes with it when you create the project, it is another plist file. When I tested the settings after coding it, it worked. The setting was able to be read, and it was the correct setting that I used. However, I went back to the settings in the same app-session, and changed the same setting. When I went to the app to see if it read the new setting, it only used the old (first) one. I tried again, but it yielded the same result. I am only able to write the setting once, and I cannot 'rewrite' or 'overwrite' the same setting. I cannot figure out what is wrong for the life of me.
You can't overwrite or write to files in the app bundle itself. If you want to write to a file, you should first copy it to the app's Library or Documents directory, something like this:
NSString *docsDir = [NSSearchPathsForDirectoriesInDomains(NSDocumentsDirectory, NSUserDomainMask) objectAtIndex:0];
NSString *plistFile = #"myplist.plist";
NSString *plistInBundle = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:plistFile ofType:nil];
NSString *plistInDocsDir = [docsDir stringByAppendingPathComponent:plistFile];
[[NSFileManager defaultManager] copyItemAtPath:plistInBundle toPath:plistInDocsDir error:NULL];
// now `plistInDocsDir` is (over)writeable
However, for storing preferences of your app, it's better practice to use the NSUserDefaults class:
[[NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults] setObject:#"Some string" forKey:#"MySettingKey"];
and/or create a Preference Bundle for your app.

How can i change display name with code

I want to dynamically change display name from within the application. Is there a way it? i dont want to use .plist. i want to use with xcode from application. Thanks
${PRODUCT_NAME} How can i call this value with code ?
The app name is defined in the app's info.plist file..
That come in Main Bundle..and iOS does not allow anything to be written and updated in Main Bundle..
So you cant programmatically change contents of app info.plist having app's name...bundle identifier ..etc
No, it's not possible. The Info.plist and everything in the app bundle is read-only once it's installed on an iPhone.
Add the following code to get the product name
NSDictionary *infoPList = [[NSBundle mainBundle] infoDictionary];
NSString *appName = [infoPList objectForKey:#"CFBundleDisplayName"];
appName is the value of "Bundle display name" or Product Name
I don't believe so.
You can localise it -- i.e., display different names depending on the language in use -- but I don't think you can change the name dynamically. That's probably a good thing... it could get pretty confusing if abused.

How to get file path in iPhone app

I have a problem accessing my files in my app.
I am currently using
//Directly from TileMap example from WWDC2010
NSString *tileDirectory = [[[NSBundle mainBundle] resourcePath]
stringByAppendingPathComponent:#"Tiles"];
to access my tiles for my MKOverlay. This gives me this directory
/Users/xxxx/Library/Application Support/iPhone Simulator/4.2/Applications/9D62025C-C53B-472C-8309-xxxx/xxxx.app/Tiles
The x's is only for privacy reasons
I have my tiles in a folder called Tiles in the root of my application which is in Xcode in a group called Tiles which is in directly in the Resources group.
When I run my app, I get a simple error saying that it could not find my tiles at the generated directory (the one quote above) If I replace that piece of code and make it:
NSString *tileDirectory = #"/Users/xxxx/Documents/xxxx/Tiles";
Then my app works fine. This is obviously because it finds my tiles in its direct location on my Mac. This is fine for testing, but I need it to work on my iPhone/iPad.
This problem might be occurring due to:
The generated directory is incorrect.
The tile images aren't getting included in the builded .app file.
Either way, I have no clue of what to do to solve it.
How can I solve this problem?
[EDIT]
I changed that piece of code to:
NSString *tileDirectory = [[NSBundle mainBundle] resourcePath];
Now it works in simulator, because all files are in the apps root folder and I don't ask for it to enter another directory called "Tiles".
This runs with no error on the simulator, but when on my iPhone it gives the original error (just a different file path but also ending with /xxxx.app
How can I ensure a directory in my app file such as xxxx.app/Tiles - TileMap does this.
Since it is your files in your app bundle, I think you can use pathForResource:ofType: to get the full pathname of your file.
Here is an example:
NSString* filePath = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"your_file_name"
ofType:#"the_file_extension"];
Remember that the "folders/groups" you make in xcode, those which are yellowish are not reflected as real folders in your iPhone app. They are just there to structure your XCode project. You can nest as many yellow group as you want and they still only serve the purpose of organizing code in XCode.
EDIT
Make a folder outside of XCode then drag it over, and select "Create folder references for any added folders" instead of "Create groups for any added folders" in the popup.
If your tiles are not in your bundle, either copied from the bundle or downloaded from the internet you can get the directory like this
NSString *documentdir = [NSSearchPathForDirectoriesInDomains(NSDocumentDirectory, NSUserDomainMask, YES) lastObject];
NSString *tileDirectory = [documentdir stringByAppendingPathComponent:#"xxxx/Tiles"];
NSLog(#"Tile Directory: %#", tileDirectory);
You need to use the URL for the link, such as this:
NSURL *path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] URLForResource:#"imagename" withExtension:#"jpg"];
It will give you a proper URL ref.
You need to add your tiles into your resource bundle. I mean add all those files to your project make sure to copy all files to project directory option checked.

Array does not load data from plist

I'm not sure what exactly is my problem since I have been using this method for a while now and never had this problem.
Basically, as the title says. This code loads data from a plist located in the "Resources" group
NSString *myFile = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"myList" ofType:#"plist"];
myArray = [[NSArray alloc]initWithContentsOfFile:myFile];
NSLog(#"%#", myArray);
It displays (null). Anyone know why?
I have in the same ViewController another one setup and works just fine. This particular plist does not load however. And I've also even deleted the plist and just created a duplicate from the other one to make sure is not a structure issue.
I am doing this the wrong way? Should I use FileManager?
UPDATE -------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ok so, I can't believe what I am about to say. lol
I am using XCode 4, the way you edit plists in Xcode is different from Xcode 3.x. As in the earlier versions you get to choose the root of the plists to be w/e you want them to (Array, Dictionary, etc) My problem was that the plist I was trying to load into a NSArray was in fact structured as a dictionary. However I never saw this in Xcode, and I have no idea how to see this other than browsing the contents using TextEdit or some other text editor.
Pretty silly I must say. Does anyone know why XCode 4 won't show the root of the plist the way XCode 3.x does?
XCode 3.x: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/919254/XCode3.png
XCode 4: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/919254/Screen%20shot%202011-04-10%20at%202.30.35%20AM.png
Use a dictionary instead. I've had undefined behavior with NSArrays and property lists. e.g.
NSString *myFile = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"myList" ofType:#"plist"];
NSMutableDictionary* myDict = [[NSMutableDictionary alloc]initWithContentsOfFile:myFile];
NSLog(#"%#", myDict);
I had a similar situation. Solving:
select *.plist in tree
call context menu
select "Open with external editor"
root will be visible - change "Class" to "Array"
save
What you have looks right. Check that the file is in the right directory, and has contents. Might want to NSLog myFile while your at it.

Problem getting path to .plist using [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource

I'm an Objective C noob, and I don't know enough to explain the following problem.
This code works:
NSString *plistPath = #"/Users/andrewf/MyApp/Resources/Plates.plist";
dicPlates = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:plistPath];
My dictionary object is loaded with values as expected.
This code does not work:
NSString *plistPath = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Plates" ofType:#"plist"];
dicPlates = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:plistPath];
plistPath comes back with a value of nil. This is the case irrespective of whether I include inDirectory:#"Resources" in the call or not. All the examples that I have found do not include inDirectory when trying to open a .plist file in the Resources directory.
I have confirmed that the file exists in the correct location and even recreated it to be sure.
This seems like such a simple problem, but I am mystified. Please assist.
I think you're confused as to where pathForResource: is looking.
This works:
NSString *plistPath = #"/Users/andrewf/MyApp/Resources/Plates.plist";
Notice that this path does not point to your application. It points to your project directory. Your plist is supposed to be at #/Users/andrewf/MyApp/build/Release/MyApp.app/Resources/Plist.plist" (for an iPhone app this would be different, more like #"/Users/andrewf/Library/Application Support/iPhone Simulator/User/Applicatons/(unique id)/MyApp.app/Resources/Plates.plist"), and it is inside the Resources folder of your app that pathForResource: is looking.
What this implies is that your resource is not in the "Copy Bundle Resources" phase of your build target. You need to drag it from the Groups and Files area to inside that phase.
I have found the problem!
The .plist file was included in the target correctly.
When the .plist was originally created, I named the file "plates.plist". Immediately after creating the file, I renamed it to "Plates.plist", and this is what I used henceforth.
Even though the file was named "Plates.plist" in my resources folder, in the target section and in the iPhone Simulator location mentioned above, the file was named "plates.plist". Curiously, the contents of the file was still updated correctly.
Now that I have changed the code to refer to "plates.plist", and renamed the file in the Resources folder to the same for good measure, everything works. I can only assume that this is a bug in the iPhone SDK.
Check that the plates.plist file has been added to the target in Xcode.
If the file is not added to the target it will not be inside the build product and NSBundle will not find it.