Dictionary from plist - ios

i have 3 plist files with named level0, level1, level2, all of this plist have the same structure, it consist of number variable and array. I init my app with data from this plist.
+(instancetype)levelWithNum:(int)levelNum; {
NSString* fileName = [NSString stringWithFormat:#"level%i.plist", levelNum];
NSString* levelPath = [[[NSBundle mainBundle]resourcePath]stringByAppendingPathComponent:fileName];
NSDictionary *levelDic = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:levelPath];
NSAssert(levelDic, #"level no loaded");
Level *l = [[Level alloc]init];
l.coinsPerLvl = [levelDic[#"coinsPerLvl"] integerValue];
l.words = levelDic[#"words"];
return l;
}
Now i decide to use only one plist and add in it 3 dictionary. How can i read only one dictionary from plist like in example above where i use plist files.
Tanks for any help!

you only need an intermediate variable thats represents the root dictionary and extract the level dictionary from the root dictionary, e.g:
+(instancetype)levelWithNum:(int)levelNum; {
NSString *levelsPlist = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"levels" ofType:#"plist"];
NSDictionary *rootDict = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile: levelsPlist];
NSString *levelKey = [NSString stringWithFormat:#"level%i", levelNum];
NSDictionary *levelDic = rootDict[levelKey];
NSAssert(levelDic, #"level no loaded");
Level *l = [[Level alloc]init];
l.coinsPerLvl = [levelDic[#"coinsPerLvl"] integerValue];
l.words = levelDic[#"words"];
return l;
}
Hope it help.

make your plist root as an array (like below). that way you can get levels info easily.
sample code
+(void)levelWithNum:(int)levelNum {
NSString* fileName = #"level.plist";
NSString* levelPath = [[[NSBundle mainBundle]resourcePath]stringByAppendingPathComponent:fileName];
NSArray *levelsArray = [NSArray arrayWithContentsOfFile:levelPath];
NSAssert(levelsArray, #"level no loaded");
Level *l = [[Level alloc]init];
l.coinsPerLvl = [[levelsArray objectAtIndex:levelNum][#"coinsPerLvl"] integerValue];
l.words = [[levelsArray objectAtIndex:levelNum][#"words"] integerValue];
return l;
}
sample plist screen shot

Related

How do I get values from a tiered .plist?

I've already looked at Parse Plist (NSString) into NSDictionary and deemed it to be not a duplicate, as that question and its answer do not address my concerns.
I have a .plist file in the file system structured like this:
The source code of this .plist file looks like this:
{
"My App" = {
"Side Panel" = {
Items = {
Price = "#123ABC";
};
};
};
}
I know how to get an item in the Root like this:
[[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"filename" ofType:#"plist"];
NSDictionary *dict = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:path];
NSString value = [dict objectForKey:#"key"]);
But what if the structure is like mine, with tiered dictionaries? How do I get the value of Price?
I would like to do this all in one method, ideally like this:
Calling
NSString *hexString = [self getColorForKey:#"My App.Side Panel.Items.Price"];
Definition
- (NSString *) getColorForKey: (NSString *)key
{
NSArray *path = [key componentsSeparatedByString:#"."];
NSDictionary *colors = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:[[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Colors" ofType:#"plist"]];
NSString *color = #"#FFFFFF"; // white is our backup
// What do I put here to get the color?
return color;
}
Here's the solution that worked for me:
+ (NSString*) getHexColorForKey:(NSString*)key
{
NSArray *path = [key componentsSeparatedByString:#"."];
NSDictionary *colors = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:[[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Colors" ofType:#"plist"]];
NSString *color = #"#FFFFFF";
for (NSString *location in path) {
NSObject *subdict = colors[location];
if ([subdict isKindOfClass:[NSString class]])
{
color = (NSString*)subdict;
break;
}
else if ([subdict isKindOfClass:[NSDictionary class]])
{
colors = (NSDictionary*)subdict; // if it's a dictinoary, our color may be inside it
}
else
{
[SilverLog level:SilverLogLevelError message:#"Unexpected type of dictinoary entry: %#", [subdict class]];
return color;
}
}
return color;
}
where key is an NSString that matches /^[^.]+(\.[^.]+)*$/, meaning it looks like my targeted #"My App.Side Panel.Items.Price".
Yes I understand what you're looking to accomplish; thank you for the clarification. I will however add that the resources and advice I have written do provide the necessary information resolve your problem.
That said, the following gets your dictionary:
NSURL *plistURL = [[NSBundle mainBundle] URLForResource:#"Info" withExtension:#"plist"];
NSData *plistData = [NSData dataWithContentsOfURL:plistURL];
NSDictionary *tieredPlistData = [NSPropertyListSerialization propertyListWithData:plistData
options:kCFPropertyListImmutable
format:NULL
error:nil];
Then, if we're interested in the information contained in Items
NSDictionary *allItemsDictionary = tieredPlistData[#"My App"][#"Side Panel"][#"Items"];
Assuming that Items will contain a number of objects, you could use
NSArray *keys = [allItems allKeys];
for(NSString *key in keys){
NSString *colorValue = allItemsDictionary[key];
// do something with said color value and key
}
Or, if there is a single value you need, then just reference that key
NSString *colorForPriceText = allItemsDictionary[#"Price"];
But a few tips:
It's generally considered a better idea to keep frequently accessed values in code instead of a plist/file that is loaded at runtime.
That said, you wouldn't put your call to load from NSBundle in the same method you would use to query a specific value. In your example, every time you need a color, you end up re-accessing NSBundle and pile on unneeded memory allocations. One method would load the plist into an iVar NSDictionary and then that NSDictionary would be used separately by another method.

Lazy load plist dictionary element(s)

The usual method for loading data from a dictionary contained in a plist is as below:
NSString *path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Data" ofType:#"plist"];
NSDictionary *data= [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:path];
Is there a way to import only the element(s) specified in a key / set of keys, like:
NSDictionary *data= [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:path forKey:key];
The idea is to perform lazy loading of dictionary contents by key.
So based on my comment above, you could add a class method to the NSDictionary via a category. You could do something like (not tested BTW).
+ (NSDictionary *)dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:(NSString *)path forKeys:(NSArray *)keys
{
NSMutableDictionary *newDictionary = nil;
NSDictionary *dictionary = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:path];
if (dictionary) {
newDictionary = [NSMutableDictionary dictionary];
for (id key in dictionary.allKeys) {
if ([keys containsObject:key]) {
newDictionary[key] = dictionary[key];
}
}
}
return [newDictionary copy];
}
If you did this, you'd see your spike in memory, but it should subside once dictionary is freed.
Alternatively, take a look at YAJL (https://github.com/lloyd/yajl). I've used this when dealing with very large JSON files. This was mainly the stream it in chunks. It is event driven, so you should be able to stream it in and detect the keys you want (hopefully).
please try the below method.
- (void)viewDidLoad
{
NSMutableArray *arry;
arry = [[NSMutableArray alloc]initWithContentsOfFile:[[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Catalog" ofType:#"plist"];
NSDictionary *dic = [menuArray objectAtIndex:indexPath.row];
lblName.text = [dic objectForKey:#"MenuName"];
}

how to load plist data into array in IOS property list

NSString *path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"recipes" ofType:#"plist"]];
NSDictionary *dict = [[NSDictionary alloc] initwithContentOfFile:path];
NSArray *textData=[NSArray new];
textData = [dict objectForkey:#"TableData"];
textData is my array name,
recipes is plist name
after excuting my text data is being empty...
where is the mistake.
The problem is that you converting .plist to dictionary in the wrong way. Check dict property, it should be nil. Code to create NSDictionary from .plist file is listed below:
CFPropertyListRef plist = CFPropertyListCreateFromXMLData(kCFAllocatorDefault,
(__bridge CFDataRef)propertyListData,
kCFPropertyListImmutable, NULL);
NSDictionary *settings = (__bridge NSDictionary *)plist;
Try this:
textData = [[NSArray alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:[[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"recipes" ofType:#"plist"]];
Anyways, you may can take a look of this tutorial:
http://ios-blog.co.uk/tutorials/how-to-populate-a-uitableview-from-a-plist-property-list/

iOS plist is null

I know there are a multitude of questions about this on SO but I can't see where I am making the mistake and am hoping some extra eyes will help. I've verified the plist is in my bundle and it is also in my docs directory and it contains data. Here's a screen capture of the app package with the plist at top:
I pass the plist in from another class and have verified that it is the correct plist.
Here's my code:
-(id)init {
if (self = [super init]) {
//set up the appTracker
appTracker = [[OAI_AppTracker alloc] init];
//set up a file manager and error container
fileManger=[NSFileManager defaultManager];
//docs directory path
documentsDirectory = [NSSearchPathForDirectoriesInDomains(NSDocumentDirectory, NSUserDomainMask, YES) objectAtIndex:0];
//track event
appTracker.appEvent = #"File Manager initialized";
[appTracker recordEvent];
}
return self;
}
- (NSDictionary* ) readPlist {
NSError* error;
//set up dictionary to hold our app data
NSDictionary* appData;
//set up destination path
NSString* destinationPath = [documentsDirectory stringByAppendingPathComponent:[NSString stringWithFormat:#"%#", plistToRead]];
if ([fileManger fileExistsAtPath:destinationPath]){
//read plist
appData = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:destinationPath];
} else {
//file doesn't exist so we have to move it to the doc folder
NSString *sourcePath=[[[NSBundle mainBundle] resourcePath]stringByAppendingPathComponent:plistToWrite];
[fileManger copyItemAtPath:sourcePath toPath:destinationPath error:&error];
//now read the plist
appData = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:destinationPath];
}
NSLog(#"%#", appData);
return appData;
}
My log shows NULL instead of the data in the plist. Appreciate any help as to what I am doing wrong.
To read your plist try something like this:
NSString *plistPath = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"PlistFileName" ofType:#"plist"];
NSDictionary *plistData = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithContentsOfFile:plistPath];

Plist to NSDictionary

I have some plist data like the one on the below image:
How do I access the "Text" value, if an NSDate equal to CDate is selected on my UIDatePicker?
So you basically want
NSString* path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"file" ofType:#"plist"];
NSArray* a = [NSArray arrayWithContentsOfFile:path];
for (NSDictionary *d in a)
{
NSString *cdate = [d objectForKey:#"CDate"];
if ([cdate isEqualToString:#"Whatever is currently selected"])
{
NSString *text = [d objectForKey:#"Text"];
// do something with text here
}
}
Stumbled across this and thought an update was due
NSDictionary *initialDefaults = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:[[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:#"Defaults" ofType:#"plist"]];

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