Getting SQLiteCursorLoader to observe data changes

Question

I'm trying to implement a DataListFragment with an adapter that uses a Loader from Commonsware. This Loader uses a SQLiteDatabase directly and doesn't require the use of ContentProviders.

The android reference states about Loaders: "While Loaders are active they should monitor the source of their data and deliver new results when the contents change."

Under my SQLiteCursor implementation (below), this does not happen. OnLoadFinished() gets called once and that's it. Presumably, one could insert Loader.onContentChanged() calls where the underlying database gets changed, but in general the database code class does not know about loaders, so I'm not sure about the best way to go about implementing this.

Does anyone have any advice on making the Loader "data aware", or should I wrap the database stuff in as a ContentProvider and use CursorLoader instead?

import com.commonsware.cwac.loaderex.SQLiteCursorLoader;

public class DataListFragment extends ListFragment implements    LoaderManager.LoaderCallbacks<Cursor>{

protected DataListAdapter  mAdapter;     // This is the Adapter being used to display the list's data.
public SQLiteDatabase      mSqlDb;
private static final int   LOADER_ID = 1;

@Override 
public void onActivityCreated(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
    super.onActivityCreated(savedInstanceState);
    int rowlayoutID = getArguments().getInt("rowLayoutID");
    // Create an empty adapter we will use to display the loaded data.
    // We pass 0 to flags, since the Loader will watch for data changes
    mAdapter = new DataListAdapter(getActivity(),rowlayoutID, null , 0);
    setListAdapter(mAdapter);
    // Prepare the loader.  Either re-connect with an existing one,
    // or start a new one.
    LoaderManager lm = getLoaderManager();
    // OnLoadFinished gets called after this, but never again.
    lm.initLoader(LOADER_ID, null, this);
}
public Loader<Cursor> onCreateLoader(int id, Bundle args) {
    String sql="SELECT * FROM "+TABLE_NAME+";";
    String[] params = null;
    SQLiteCursorLoader CursorLoader = new SQLiteCursorLoader(getActivity(), mSqlDb, sql, params);
    return CursorLoader;
}
public void onLoadFinished(Loader<Cursor> loader, Cursor data) {
    // Swap the new cursor in.  (The framework will take care of closing the old cursor once we return.)
    mAdapter.swapCursor(data);
    // The list should now be shown.
    if (isResumed()) { setListShown(true);} 
    else { setListShownNoAnimation(true); }
}
public void onLoaderReset(Loader<Cursor> loader) {
    // This is called when the last Cursor provided to onLoadFinished()
    // above is about to be closed.  We need to make sure we are no
    // longer using it.
    mAdapter.swapCursor(null);
}

Answer 1

The Loader documentation is flawed.

100% of Loader implementations built into Android itself "monitor the source of their data and deliver new results when the contents change". Since there is only one Loader implementation built into Android itself as of now, their documentation is accurate as far as that goes.

However, quoting a book update of mine that should be released in an hour or two:

There is nothing in the framework that requires this behavior. Moreover, there are some cases where is clearly a bad idea to do this – imagine a Loader loading data off of the Internet, needing to constantly poll some server to look for changes.

I do plan on augmenting SQLiteCursorLoader to be at least a bit more aware of database changes, if you route all database modifications through it. That too will have limitations, because you don't share Loader objects between activities (let alone have access to them from services).

The only reason CursorLoader works as it does is because it uses a ContentProvider -- a singleton that can therefore be aware of all operations.

At the moment, whatever portion of your code is responsible for inserts, updates, and deletes will either need to tap the SQLiteCursorLoader on the shoulder and have it update, or notify the activity of the change (e.g., broadcast from a Service) so the activity can tap the SQLiteCursorLoader on the shoulder.