Create documents folder iPhone SDK - iphone

Question

I am developing an App that displays several pages of Text when the correct buttons are pressed. It is Static proprietary information. There is a different Text File for each of six buttons.
I am new to the ios SDK. Does creating a project in XCODE automatically create a Documents Folder? Is the "Documents Folder" what Apple is calling the "Sandbox"?
Can I simply write my Text, (that part which will display on the screen, LOTS of Text), drop it into the "Documents Folder", then display it in "scrolling mode" on the iPhone when a certain button is pressed?
I would prefer the Text to be part of the compile, since the information is proprietary, not simply a Text File, if there is a way to store and display large Text Files efficiently.

Answer 1

Yes Ken, the documents directory is there by default when you create an app, and yes, you can certainly write and read text data from it if you want to.
You cannot directly drop data into the Documents folder however, you need to do so programmatically.
Assume that one of your files are 'TextFile1.txt'. You should add this file to your project firstly, and somewhere in the appDelegate, write the following code;
NSString *fileBundlePath = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"TextFile1" ofType:#"txt"];
NSArray *paths = NSSearchPathForDirectoriesInDomains(NSDocumentDirectory, NSUserDomainMask, YES);
NSString *documentsDirectory = [paths objectAtIndex:0];
NSString *fileDocumentDirectorySavePath = [documentsDirectory stringByAppendingPathComponent:#"TextFile1.txt"];
NSFileManager *fm = [NSFileManager defaultManager];
if (![fm fileExistsAtPath:fileDocumentDirectorySavePath])
[fm copyItemAtPath:fileBundlePath toPath:fileDocumentDirectorySavePath error:nil];
This will copy the TextFile1.txt into your apps Documents folder from which you can read it anytime you need with the following code;
// You can get the fileDocumentDirectorySavePath same way as in the above code
NSString *stringToDisplay = [[NSString alloc] initWithData:[NSData dataWithContentsOfFile:fileDocumentDirectorySavePath] encoding:NSUTF8StringEncoding];
NSLog(#"String : %#", stringToDisplay);
You can do this for any number of text files you need to work with.

Answer 2

If you don't want to change the text dynamically (i.e., only when you submit an update), just add the files directly to your Xcode project and don't even worry about the sandbox/Documents folder. You can drag the files into the sidebar in Xcode (creating a custom folder for it would be very organized of you) and check the "Copy files to project folder?" when asked. As is stated, they're now copied and part of the compiled app. Then you can query the files and display them in a UITextView, automatically supporting scrolling of text.
Alternatively, you could do what I think is the easier method and include the files directly in your code. In a class file that loads the text, in the .h file (Header), add a UITextView as a property and a variable. In the .m file (Implementation), do yourTextView = [[UITextView alloc] init];, then set yourTextView.text to an NSString containing your text. Sounds confusing, but it will be quicker and easier to update in the end. That is, unless your text is formatted... Anyway, you could also just create a UITextView in your XIB/NIB file and add your text directly.
I'd suggest you do it in code. That will be the easiest to change.

Answer 3

Adding text to your app is one thing - making it secure is more difficult. I had to deal with a similar issue and decided to use unformatted text that I include encrypted in my app and only decrpt the part that is being shown. Really depends how "secret" you want to keep the text. Remember, anyone can read it anyway and copy it right from the screen with a screenshot. Also unencrypted text in apps can be read and extracted quite easily using a HexEditor!
Alternatively you can prepare the text in *.txt (unformatted) or html (formatted as you like) file format and just include it in your app. However, this is the easies way for others to just copy the file.