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Android Build an Interactive Story App User Input Finding Views by IDs

Posted by Yusuf Mohamed
Yusuf Mohamed
2,631 Points

My findViewById doesn't work.

I just used the same technique I learned from the course when you build your first simple app but it doesn't work. Could someone help me?

MainActivity.java 
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.view.View;
import android.widget.Button;

public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {

    protected Button exterminateButton;
  exterminateButton = (Button) findViewById(R.id.button1);

    @Override
    public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
        super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
        setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);

        // Declare our view variables

    }

}

2 Answers

samuel zaffran
samuel zaffran
24,815 Points
samuel zaffran
samuel zaffran
24,815 Points

You're trying to declare your view outside the parent view, like you want to refer to something that doesn't yet exist. Instead try to initialize it inside your onCreate method. Got it ? Let me know !

Yusuf Mohamed
Yusuf Mohamed
2,631 Points

So what I was doing wrong was I declared the view outside the onCreate method whichmeans it basically doesn't exist?

Yusuf Mohamed
Yusuf Mohamed
2,631 Points

By the way, thank you so much.

samuel zaffran
samuel zaffran
24,815 Points
samuel zaffran
samuel zaffran
24,815 Points

You'll see it in future courses about the android lifecycle but yes it's something like that, it can't refer to a view without the layout containing this view, when you declare setContentView(R.layout.activity_main); in your onCreate method it sets the layout to this layout and from here you can refer to it ! You're well come !