Understanding the Issue with Custom WEPopover Push Controller

In this article, we’ll delve into the intricacies of creating a custom popover in iOS and explore the reasons behind the differing behavior between iOS 6 and iOS 5.

Background on Popovers

A popover is a view that appears on top of another view when a user interacts with an element (such as a button or image) on their device. In iOS, popovers can be presented using UIPopoverController or by utilizing third-party libraries like WEPopover.

For this article, we’ll focus on the latter approach, leveraging the WEPopover project’s source code to create a custom popover.

Creating a Custom Popover

To begin, let’s examine the provided code snippet:

Task *task = [ar objectAtIndex:indexPath.row];
TaskViewController *viewController =[[TaskViewController alloc] init];
viewController.currentTask = task;

viewController.modalTransitionStyle = UIModalTransitionStyleCrossDissolve;
[self presentModalViewController:viewController animated:YES];

In this example, we’re creating a TaskViewController instance and setting its currentTask property. We then push the view controller onto our current view controller using presentModalViewController:withAnimation:.

However, as the original question highlights, there’s an issue with displaying the pushed view controller on the screen when interacting with the popover in iOS 5 versus iOS 6.

The Problem

To resolve this issue, we need to understand how popovers are presented and managed in iOS.

In iOS 4 and later, UIPopoverController was introduced to provide a more elegant way of presenting popovers. When using this API, the popover’s content view is automatically resized to fit the screen when it’s presented modally.

On the other hand, in iOS 5, the popover’s behavior changed slightly. When interacting with a popover, the content view’s size is not automatically adjusted; instead, the entire screen is used as the popover’s background area.

This change has significant implications for how we create and manage our custom popovers.

Resolving the Issue

To push a new view controller onto our current view controller when tapping on an element within the popover, we need to adjust our code accordingly.

Here’s the corrected code:

Task *task = [ar objectAtIndex:indexPath.row];
TaskViewController *viewController =[[TaskViewController alloc] init];
viewController.currentTask = task;

[self presentViewController:viewController animated:YES completion:nil];

Notice that in iOS 5 and later, we’re using presentViewController:animated:completion: instead of presentModalViewController:animated:.

In this updated code snippet, the view controller is presented without animating its modal transition. This allows us to maintain control over the presentation process and adjust our view controllers’ sizes correctly.

However, when it comes to handling popover interactions in iOS 5 and later, we still need to make some adjustments.

Managing Popover Interactions

When interacting with a popover in iOS 5 and later, we can use the UIPopoverControllerDelegate protocol to manage the popover’s behavior. By implementing this delegate, we can respond to various events such as the user tapping on an element within the popover or dismissing the popover altogether.

Here’s an example implementation of the UIPopoverControllerDelegate protocol:

@interface ViewController (Popover)

@property (nonatomic, weak) id<UIPopoverControllerDelegate> popoverDelegate;

@end

@implementation ViewController (Popover)

- (void)viewDidLoad {
    [super viewDidLoad];
    
    // Create a UIPopoverController instance
    UIPopoverController *popover = [[UIPopoverController alloc] initWithContentViewController:self.viewController];

    // Set the delegate
    self.popoverDelegate = self;
}

#pragma mark - UIPopoverControllerDelegate

- (void)popoverControllerDidPresentPopoverController:(UIPopoverController *)popoverController {
    NSLog(@"Popover presented");
}

- (void)popoverControllerDidDismissPopoverController:(UIPopoverController *)popoverController {
    NSLog(@"Popover dismissed");
}

- (void)popoverControllerShouldDismissPopoverController:(UIPopoverController *)popoverController {
    return YES;
}
@end

In this example, we’re implementing the UIPopoverControllerDelegate protocol to manage our popover’s behavior. We’ve added three methods:

1. popoverControllerDidPresentPopoverController: - This method is called when the popover is presented.
2. popoverControllerDidDismissPopoverController: - This method is called when the popover is dismissed.
3. popoverControllerShouldDismissPopoverController: - This method determines whether the popover should be dismissed or not.

By implementing these methods, we can respond to various events related to the popover’s behavior and ensure that our app handles interactions correctly.

Conclusion

Creating a custom popover in iOS involves understanding how popovers are presented and managed on your device. By utilizing the WEPopover project’s source code and adjusting our code accordingly, we can create a custom popover with seamless interactions.

To resolve the issue of displaying pushed view controllers on the screen when interacting with the popover, we need to make adjustments to our presentation process.

By implementing the UIPopoverControllerDelegate protocol, we can manage our popover’s behavior more effectively and ensure that our app responds correctly to various events related to the popover’s interactions.

Last modified on 2023-08-06