Landscape UISplitViewController when using a UINavigationController in the detail - ipad

Question

I am developing an iPad/Universal application, and I am facing the problem of handling a UINavigationController as the main detail view in a UISplitViewController. What I want to know is how to add the default side controller button to the detail controller when in landscape orientation.
Definition
The split view controller has been defined this way:
splitViewController = [[UISplitViewController alloc] init];
SideController *root = [[[SideController alloc] init] autorelease];
DetailController *detail = [[DetailController alloc] init];
InserisciDatiController *calcolo = [[[InserisciDatiController alloc]
initWithNibName:#"InserisciDatiNuovi"
bundle:[NSBundle mainBundle]]
autorelease];
UINavigationController *rootNav = [[[UINavigationController alloc] initWithRootViewController:root]autorelease];
UINavigationController *calcoloNav = [[[UINavigationController alloc] initWithRootViewController:calcolo] autorelease];
splitViewController.viewControllers = [NSArray arrayWithObjects:rootNav, calcoloNav, nil];
splitViewController.delegate = detail;
and later on I release all the releasable objects.
I am using the SideController as a sort of index for the detail controller. It has a table view, and clicking each row I update the main view controller of the detail. Each new controller is always an instance of UINavigationController.
Update the detail
myAppDelegate *delegate = (myAppDelegate *)[[UIApplication sharedApplication] delegate];
UINavigationController *nav = (UINavigationController *)[delegate.splitViewController.viewControllers objectAtIndex:1];
[nav setViewControllers:[NSArray arrayWithObjects:controller, nil]];
I use this piece of code to update the detail controller, when the user taps a row in the side view controller.
Handle landscape orientation
I'd like to know how to handle the landscape orientation, when I want to add the default toolbar button to display the hidden side view controller. What I am not able to do is getting the toolbar of the detail navigation controller to add the button using this method:
- (void)splitViewController:(UISplitViewController*)svc
willHideViewController:(UIViewController *)aViewController
withBarButtonItem:(UIBarButtonItem*)barButtonItem
forPopoverController:(UIPopoverController*)pc
And also, when I push a new controller to the navigation controller the default back button will appear in the toolbar. In this case how should I handle the button creation?
Update
Please, do not tell me that no-one has ever had this kind of problem! How do you develop iPad apps? Sob ...

Answer 1

I found a way that could be useful for someone, even though I do not really think this is a clean way of handling the navigation controller.
In the split view controller delegate I implemented the splitViewController:willHideViewController:withBarButtonItem:forPopoverController: method this way:
- (void)splitViewController:(UISplitViewController*)svc
willHideViewController:(UIViewController *)aViewController
withBarButtonItem:(UIBarButtonItem*)barButtonItem
forPopoverController:(UIPopoverController*)pc
{
barButtonItem.title = NSLocalizedString(#"menu", nil);
myAppDelegate *app = (myAppDelegate *)[[UIApplication sharedApplication] delegate];
UINavigationController *nav = [app.splitViewController.viewControllers objectAtIndex:1];
UIViewController *ctrl = [nav.viewControllers objectAtIndex:0];
if (!ctrl.navigationItem.backBarButtonItem && !ctrl.navigationItem.leftBarButtonItem) {
ctrl.navigationItem.leftBarButtonItem = barButtonItem;
}
}
Here I present the bar button item that will show the popover view representing the side view controller if and only if the navigation controller is not showing the back button or another custom left button item.
Hope this helps someone!

Answer 2

I believe that Slava Bushtruk of Alterplay has worked out what you're looking for and used it in his APSplitViewController library.

Answer 3

I think the reason you haven't gotten any good answers is that it's really hard to understand your problem, i.e., your question could be clearer.
So first let me see if I've understood the problem correctly. Is the problem that you don't know how to handle the case when you've pushed something on your navigation controller and is supposed to show both the back button and the split view button?
If so, the way we've solved that problem is that the split view button is only visible in the root of the navigation controller. The side controller is usually only relevant for the detail view's root view controller anyway.
If I've misunderstood your problem or my solution isn't applicable to your project, please let me know.
EDIT: So if you insist on doing this, here's a way to do it:
toolbar = [[UIToolbar alloc] initWithFrame:(UIInterfaceOrientationIsPortrait(interfaceOrientation)) ? CGRectMake(0, 0, 768, 44) : CGRectMake(0, 0, 703, 44)];
toolbar.autoresizingMask = UIViewAutoresizingFlexibleWidth;
[self.navigationController.navigationBar addSubview:toolbar];
On viewWillDisappear:
[self setToolbarHidden:YES animated:animated];
and on viewWillAppear:
[self setToolbarHidden:NO animated:animated];
Now you have a toolbar that you can add anything to. Well, anything that can be added to a UIToolbar anyway, which is almost anything.