I am creating a UIView programtically that is scaled and translated to the center of my view. I am then adding subviews (UILabel's) to that view programatically and the issue I have encountered is that the text for the UILabel's is stretched and difficult to read. I have tried to set autoresizeSubviews = false however this did not have any effect. I have also tried setting the number of lines but this did not have any affect either. I wanted to know if there was a possible solution to this problem that perhaps I am overlooking. Below is my code...
Here i instantiate each UI object to be used on view including view itself
//create lazy vars for UIView that is instantiated until it is initialized
lazy var enlargedView: UIView = {
let view = UIView()
view.backgroundColor = UIColor.white
view.layer.cornerRadius = 12.0
view.clipsToBounds = true
return view
}()
lazy var profileImageView: UIImageView = {
let imageView = UIImageView()
imageView.frame = CGRect(x: self.enlargedView.center.x, y: self.enlargedView.bounds.origin.y + 20.0, width: self.enlargedView.bounds.width * 0.4, height: self.enlargedView.bounds.width * 0.4)
imageView.layer.cornerRadius = imageView.frame.width / 2
imageView.clipsToBounds = true
imageView.layer.borderColor = UIColor.black.cgColor
imageView.layer.borderWidth = 1.0
imageView.contentMode = .scaleAspectFit
imageView.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
return imageView
}()
lazy var usernameLabel: UILabel = {
let label = UILabel()
label.numberOfLines = 0
label.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label.textColor = UIColor.black
let font = UIFont(name: Constants.Fonts.GILL_SANS_SEMIBOLD, size: 8.0)
let fontMetrics = UIFontMetrics(forTextStyle: .body)
label.font = fontMetrics.scaledFont(for: font!)
label.textAlignment = .center
//label.sizeToFit()
label.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
return label
} ()
lazy var userDataLabel: UILabel = {
let label = UILabel()
//creates implicit height for label
label.numberOfLines = 0
label.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label.textColor = UIColor.black
let font = UIFont(name: Constants.Fonts.GILL_SANS, size: 10.0)
let fontMetrics = UIFontMetrics(forTextStyle: .body)
label.font = fontMetrics.scaledFont(for: font!)
label.textAlignment = .center
label.sizeToFit()
label.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
return label
} ()
Next I create animation for view to scale and translate once a collectionView cell is tapped
let cell = collectionView.dequeueReusableCell(withReuseIdentifier: "SearchCell", for: indexPath) as! SearchCell
let currentFrame = cell.frame
let selectedUser = userNameArr[indexPath.row]
enlargedView.frame = currentFrame
let backgroundView = UIView(frame: self.view.bounds)
backgroundView.backgroundColor = UIColor.black.withAlphaComponent(0.5)
UIView.animate(withDuration: 0.3, delay: 0.0, options: .curveEaseOut, animations: {
self.view.addSubview(self.enlargedView)
//translate view to center of screen
self.enlargedView.center = CGPoint(x: self.view.bounds.midX, y: self.view.bounds.midY)
//while view is being translated background subview should be inserted
self.view.insertSubview(backgroundView, belowSubview: self.enlargedView)
self.enlargedView.transform = CGAffineTransform(scaleX: 2.5, y: 2.5)
}) { (viewWasEnlarged) in
if viewWasEnlarged {
if let profile = selectedUser.user_photo_url {
self.profileImageView.kf.setImage(with: URL(string:Constants.Server.MEDIA_URL + profile))
} else {
self.profileImageView.image = UIImage(named: "user_icon")
}
self.enlargedView.addSubview(self.profileImageView)
self.profileImageView.snp.makeConstraints { (make) in
make.centerX.equalToSuperview()
make.top.equalTo(self.enlargedView.snp.top).offset(20.0)
make.width.equalTo(self.enlargedView.snp.width).multipliedBy(0.4)
make.height.equalTo(self.enlargedView.snp.width).multipliedBy(0.4)
}
//USERNAME label
self.usernameLabel.text = selectedUser.user_name!
self.enlargedView.addSubview(self.usernameLabel)
self.usernameLabel.snp.makeConstraints { (make) in
make.centerX.equalToSuperview()
make.width.equalTo(self.enlargedView.snp.width).multipliedBy(0.9)
make.top.equalTo(self.profileImageView.snp.bottom).offset(5.0)
}
//reset enlarged view back to original value
self.usernameLabel.transform = CGAffineTransform.identity
//USER DATA label
var userAge = ""
var userRelationshipStatus = ""
if let userYear = selectedUser.user_birthday {
let yr = self.calendar.dateComponents([.year], from: userYear).year
userAge = "\(yr!)"
}
if let status = selectedUser.user_stats {
userRelationshipStatus = status
}
self.userDataLabel.text = userAge + " | " + userRelationshipStatus
self.enlargedView.addSubview(self.userDataLabel)
self.userDataLabel.snp.makeConstraints { (make) in
make.centerX.equalToSuperview()
make.width.equalTo(self.enlargedView.snp.width).multipliedBy(0.2)
make.top.equalTo(self.usernameLabel.snp.bottom).offset(3.0)
}
//create label to show HUB as well
//create bio
//show Path??
}
}
The imageView is unaffected however the text itself is not reflected correctly
I just cut the original string \nfoo\n\nbar\n\nfoo\n\nbar\n into two different strings \nfoo\n\nbar\n and \nfoo\n\nbar\n. The cut strings will be set into its dedicated label. I was expecting that the combined height of the two labels would just be the same with a label that has the original string. Can you guide me into something that explains this? Is there a way to make the combined two labels the same with the one label without adding/deleting a character from the cut strings?
Playground
import PlaygroundSupport
import Foundation
import UIKit
PlaygroundPage.current.needsIndefiniteExecution = true
let viewWidth: CGFloat = 100.0
func createLabel(_ text: String, _ backgroundColor: UIColor = .white) -> UILabel {
let label = UILabel()
label.text = text
label.numberOfLines = 0
label.backgroundColor = backgroundColor
label.textColor = .black
label.sizeToFit()
label.frame.size.width = viewWidth
return label
}
let view = UIView(frame: CGRect(x: 0, y: 0, width: viewWidth, height: 1000))
view.backgroundColor = .white
let label1 = createLabel("\nfoo\n\nbar\n", .green)
let label2 = createLabel("\nfoo\n\nbar\n", .blue)
let label3 = createLabel("\nfoo\n\nbar\n\nfoo\n\nbar\n", .red)
let label4 = createLabel("\nfoo\n\nbar\n", .brown)
let label5 = createLabel("\nfoo\n\nbar\n", .brown)
label2.frame.origin.y = label1.frame.maxY
label3.frame.origin.y = label2.frame.maxY
label4.frame.origin.y = label3.frame.maxY
label5.frame.origin.y = label4.frame.maxY
view.addSubview(label1)
view.addSubview(label2)
view.addSubview(label3)
view.addSubview(label4)
view.addSubview(label5)
PlaygroundPage.current.liveView = view
/*
\nfoo\n\nbar\n
\nfoo\n\nbar\n
*/
when you combine the label4 and label5 that way, you have three new line,
the label4 should be let label4 = createLabel("\nfoo\n\nbar", .brown)
remove \n at the end.
I have 3 UILabels and I want to set same (the smallest one from all of 3 possibilities) font for all of them. What is the problem? I don't know how to check the current font - each of UILabels use Autoshrink with minimal font scale and lines amount equaled to 0. The text of UILabels is set in ViewDidLoad() method (there are many combinations of possible label texts).
I tried to get the current font size with UILabel.font.pointSize property (called in viewDidAppear() method) and than compare all of them. The problem is that that UILabel.font.pointSize returns not current value of UILabel text font size (after Autoshrink has been done) but the value that is set in storyboard.
I'm totally out of ideas so thanks for the help!
Greetings, John
use this extention
extension String {
func height(withConstrainedWidth width: CGFloat, font: UIFont) -> CGFloat {
let constraintRect = CGSize(width: width, height: .greatestFiniteMagnitude)
let boundingBox = self.boundingRect(with: constraintRect, options: .usesLineFragmentOrigin, attributes: [NSFontAttributeName: font], context: nil)
return ceil(boundingBox.height)
}
}
get height
height = strDesc.height(withConstrainedWidth: UIScreen.main.bounds.size.width - 160, font: UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 14.0))
This is one way to get the current size of the UILabel pointsize although I know of more ways if this does not work. This is the cleanest and fastest. See example and extension included.
import UIKit
class ViewController: UIViewController {
lazy var label1 : UILabel = {
let lbl = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 20, y: 80, width: self.view.bounds.width - 40, height: 40))
lbl.text = "This is some large text to make it fit to size with a big font size"
lbl.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 50, weight: .bold)
lbl.textColor = .black
lbl.minimumScaleFactor = 0.01
lbl.adjustsFontSizeToFitWidth = true
lbl.numberOfLines = 0
return lbl
}()
lazy var label2 : UILabel = {
let lbl = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 20, y: label1.frame.maxY + 5, width: self.view.bounds.width - 40, height: 40))
lbl.text = "This is one line"
lbl.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 20, weight: .bold)
lbl.textColor = .black
lbl.minimumScaleFactor = 0.01
lbl.adjustsFontSizeToFitWidth = true
lbl.numberOfLines = 0
return lbl
}()
lazy var label3 : UILabel = {
let lbl = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 20, y: label2.frame.maxY + 10, width: self.view.bounds.width - 40, height: 80))
lbl.text = "This is some large text to make it fit to size with a big font size"
lbl.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 100, weight: .bold)
lbl.textColor = .black
lbl.minimumScaleFactor = 0.01
lbl.adjustsFontSizeToFitWidth = true
lbl.numberOfLines = 0
return lbl
}()
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
// Do any additional setup after loading the view, typically from a nib.
self.view.addSubview(label1)
self.view.addSubview(label2)
self.view.addSubview(label3)
var minSize : CGFloat = .greatestFiniteMagnitude
for sub in self.view.subviews{
if let lbl = sub as? UILabel{
//get the size
let font = lbl.adjustedFont()
print("the size is \(font.pointSize)")
minSize = min(font.pointSize,minSize)
}
}
print("the minimum for all fonts is \(minSize)")
print("i am going to delay for 3 seconds and then reset all the labels to the minimum size :)")
DispatchQueue.main.asyncAfter(deadline: DispatchTime.now() + 3.0) {
for sub in self.view.subviews{
if let lbl = sub as? UILabel{
lbl.font = lbl.font.withSize(minSize)
}
}
}
}
}
extension UILabel{
func adjustedFont()->UIFont {
guard let txt = text else {
return self.font
}
let attributes: [NSAttributedString.Key: Any] = [.font: self.font]
let attributedString = NSAttributedString(string: txt, attributes: attributes)
let drawingContext = NSStringDrawingContext()
drawingContext.minimumScaleFactor = self.minimumScaleFactor
attributedString.boundingRect(with: bounds.size,
options: [.usesLineFragmentOrigin,.usesFontLeading],
context: drawingContext)
let fontSize = font.pointSize * drawingContext.actualScaleFactor
return font.withSize(CGFloat(floor(Double(fontSize))))
}
}
Example in Action
What I've found is that inside viewDidLoad() your constraints are not fully defined yet. You can try to do these calculations in another method for example viewWillAppear() or any other that suits you and is executed after viewDidLoad().
I am running into a basic problem with views on iPad. I have a viewController. The view is using a UIImageView with a full screen image as a background image. I am trying to overlay labels on the top. If I set labels individually, both views show up. If I call a function with the same information only one view shows up. I need to extend it many labels. Here is the code:
class ViewController: UIViewController {
#IBOutlet weak var backGroundImageView: UIImageView!
var cFrame:[CGRect?] = [CGRect?](repeating: nil, count: 13)
var offsets:[CGRect?] = [CGRect?](repeating: nil, count: 13)
var labels: [UILabel?] = [UILabel?](repeating:UILabel(), count:13)
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
cFrame[0] = CGRect(x:450,y:530,width:251,height:68)
cFrame[1] = CGRect(x:147,y:676,width:222,height:24)
loadFrameValues()
var frame = CGRect(x: 450, y: 520, width: 251, height: 68)
let label0 = UILabel(frame: frame)
label0.backgroundColor = .white
label0.numberOfLines = 0
label0.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label0.textAlignment = .center
label0.text = "Text 1"
frame = CGRect(x: 152, y: 686, width: 210, height: 16)
let label1 = UILabel(frame: frame)
label1.backgroundColor = .cyan
label1.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label1.textAlignment = .left
label1.text = "Text 2"
label1.font = label1.font.withSize(12)
backGroundImageView.addSubview(label0)
backGroundImageView.addSubview(label1)
// showView(label: labels[0]!, frame: cFrame[0]!)
// showView(label: labels[1]!, frame: cFrame[1]!)
// }
}
func showView(label: UILabel, frame:CGRect) {
label.frame = frame
label.backgroundColor = .white
label.numberOfLines = 0
label.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label.textAlignment = .center
label.text = "Syed Tariq"
backGroundImageView.addSubview(label)
}
You can't add subview (label in your case) to UIImageView. So add label as subview to the superview of your image view.
override func viewDidLoad() {
cFrame[0] = CGRect(x:50,y:130,width:151,height:68)
cFrame[1] = CGRect(x:114,y:276,width:122,height:24)
showView(frame: cFrame[0]!)
showView(frame: cFrame[1]!)
}
func showView(frame:CGRect) {
let label = UILabel(frame: frame)
label.backgroundColor = .green
label.numberOfLines = 0
label.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label.textAlignment = .center
label.text = "Syed Tariq"
self.view.addSubview(label)
}
How do I create a UILabel programmatically using Swift in Xcode 6?
I have started with a new "Single View Application" in Xcode 6 and selected Swift for this project. I have my files AppDelegate.swift and ViewController.swift and I'm not sure what to do from here.
Creating a UILabel programmatically in Swift 3+:
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
let label = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 0, y: 0, width: 200, height: 21))
label.center = CGPoint(x: 160, y: 285)
label.textAlignment = .center
label.text = "I'm a test label"
self.view.addSubview(label)
}
Here is the correct code for Swift 3, with comments for instructional purposes:
override func viewDidLoad()
{
super.viewDidLoad()
// CGRectMake has been deprecated - and should be let, not var
let label = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 0, y: 0, width: 200, height: 21))
// you will probably want to set the font (remember to use Dynamic Type!)
label.font = UIFont.preferredFont(forTextStyle: .footnote)
// and set the text color too - remember good contrast
label.textColor = .black
// may not be necessary (e.g., if the width & height match the superview)
// if you do need to center, CGPointMake has been deprecated, so use this
label.center = CGPoint(x: 160, y: 284)
// this changed in Swift 3 (much better, no?)
label.textAlignment = .center
label.text = "I am a test label"
self.view.addSubview(label)
}
Just to add onto the already great answers, you might want to add multiple labels in your project so doing all of this (setting size, style etc) will be a pain. To solve this, you can create a separate UILabel class.
import UIKit
class MyLabel: UILabel {
required init?(coder aDecoder: NSCoder) {
super.init(coder: aDecoder)
initializeLabel()
}
override init(frame: CGRect) {
super.init(frame: frame)
initializeLabel()
}
func initializeLabel() {
self.textAlignment = .left
self.font = UIFont(name: "Halvetica", size: 17)
self.textColor = UIColor.white
}
}
To use it, do the following
import UIKit
class ViewController: UIViewController {
var myLabel: MyLabel()
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
myLabel = MyLabel(frame: CGRect(x: self.view.frame.size.width / 2, y: self.view.frame.size.height / 2, width: 100, height: 20))
self.view.addSubView(myLabel)
}
}
Swift 4.X and Xcode 10
let lbl = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 10, y: 50, width: 230, height: 21))
lbl.textAlignment = .center //For center alignment
lbl.text = "This is my label fdsjhfg sjdg dfgdfgdfjgdjfhg jdfjgdfgdf end..."
lbl.textColor = .white
lbl.backgroundColor = .lightGray//If required
lbl.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 17)
//To display multiple lines in label
lbl.numberOfLines = 0 //If you want to display only 2 lines replace 0(Zero) with 2.
lbl.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping //Word Wrap
// OR
lbl.lineBreakMode = .byCharWrapping //Charactor Wrap
lbl.sizeToFit()//If required
yourView.addSubview(lbl)
If you have multiple labels in your class use extension to add properties.
//Label 1
let lbl1 = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 10, y: 50, width: 230, height: 21))
lbl1.text = "This is my label fdsjhfg sjdg dfgdfgdfjgdjfhg jdfjgdfgdf end..."
lbl1.myLabel()//Call this function from extension to all your labels
view.addSubview(lbl1)
//Label 2
let lbl2 = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 10, y: 150, width: 230, height: 21))
lbl2.text = "This is my label fdsjhfg sjdg dfgdfgdfjgdjfhg jdfjgdfgdf end..."
lbl2.myLabel()//Call this function from extension to all your labels
view.addSubview(lbl2)
extension UILabel {
func myLabel() {
textAlignment = .center
textColor = .white
backgroundColor = .lightGray
font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 17)
numberOfLines = 0
lineBreakMode = .byCharWrapping
sizeToFit()
}
}
Create UILabel view outside viewDidLoad class and then add that view to your main view in viewDidLoad method.
lazy var myLabel: UILabel = {
let label = UILabel()
label.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
label.text = "This is label view."
label.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 12)
return label
}()
And then add that view in viewDidLoad()
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
view.addSubview(myLabel)
// Set its constraint to display it on screen
myLabel.widthAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 200).isActive = true
myLabel.centerXAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.centerXAnchor).isActive = true
myLabel.centerYAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.centerYAnchor).isActive = true
}
You can create a label using the code below. Updated.
let yourLabel: UILabel = UILabel()
yourLabel.frame = CGRect(x: 50, y: 150, width: 200, height: 21)
yourLabel.backgroundColor = UIColor.orange
yourLabel.textColor = UIColor.black
yourLabel.textAlignment = NSTextAlignment.center
yourLabel.text = "test label"
self.view.addSubview(yourLabel)
Another answer in Swift 3:
let myLabel = UILabel()
myLabel.frame = CGRect(x: 0, y: 0, width: 100, height: 100)
myLabel.center = CGPoint(x: 0, y: 0)
myLabel.textAlignment = .center
myLabel.text = "myLabel!!!!!"
self.view.addSubview(myLabel)
Create label in swift 4
let label = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: self.view.frame.origin.x, y: self.view.frame.origin.y, width: self.view.frame.size.width, height: 50))
label.textAlignment = .center
label.text = "Hello this my label"
//To set the color
label.backgroundColor = UIColor.white
label.textColor = UIColor.black
//To set the font Dynamic
label.font = UIFont(name: "Helvetica-Regular", size: 20.0)
//To set the system font
label.font = UIFont.systemFont(ofSize: 20.0)
//To display multiple lines
label.numberOfLines = 0
label.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping //Wrap the word of label
label.lineBreakMode = .byCharWrapping //Wrap the charactor of label
label.sizeToFit()
self.view.addSubview(label)
An alternative using a closure to separate out the code into something a bit neater using Swift 4:
class theViewController: UIViewController {
/** Create the UILabel */
var theLabel: UILabel = {
let label = UILabel()
label.lineBreakMode = .byWordWrapping
label.textColor = UIColor.white
label.textAlignment = .left
label.numberOfLines = 3
label.font = UIFont(name: "Helvetica-Bold", size: 22)
return label
}()
override func viewDidLoad() {
/** Add theLabel to the ViewControllers view */
view.addSubview(theLabel)
}
override func viewDidLayoutSubviews() {
/* Set the frame when the layout is changed */
theLabel.frame = CGRect(x: 0,
y: 0,
width: view.frame.width - 30,
height: 24)
}
}
As a note, attributes for theLabel can still be changed whenever using functions in the VC. You're just setting various defaults inside the closure and minimizing clutter in functions like viewDidLoad()
Swift 4.2 and Xcode 10. Somewhere in ViewController:
private lazy var debugInfoLabel: UILabel = {
let label = UILabel()
label.textColor = .white
label.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
yourView.addSubview(label)
NSLayoutConstraint.activate([
label.centerXAnchor.constraint(equalTo: suggestionView.centerXAnchor),
label.centerYAnchor.constraint(equalTo: suggestionView.centerYAnchor, constant: -100),
label.widthAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 120),
label.heightAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 50)])
return label
}()
...
Using:
debugInfoLabel.text = debugInfo
let label = UILabel(frame: CGRect(x: 0, y: 0, width: 200, height: 21))
label.center = CGPoint(x: 160, y: 285)
label.textAlignment = .center
label.text = "My label"
self.view.addSubview(label)
Try above code in ViewDidLoad
Swift 4.2 and Xcode 10
Initialize label before viewDidLoad.
lazy var topLeftLabel: UILabel = {
let label = UILabel()
label.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
label.text = "TopLeft"
return label
}()
In viewDidLoad add label to the view and apply constraints.
override func viewDidLoad() {
super.viewDidLoad()
view.addSubview(topLeftLabel)
topLeftLabel.leadingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.leadingAnchor, constant: 10).isActive = true
topLeftLabel.topAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.safeAreaLayoutGuide.topAnchor, constant: 10).isActive = true
}