1page.title=Modifying Contacts Using Intents
2trainingnavtop=true
3@jd:body
4<div id="tb-wrapper">
5<div id="tb">
6
7<!-- table of contents -->
8<h2>This lesson teaches you to</h2>
9<ol>
10  <li><a href="#InsertContact">Insert a New Contact Using an Intent</a></li>
11  <li><a href="#EditContact">Edit an Existing Contact Using an Intent</a></li>
12  <li><a href="#InsertEdit">Let Users Choose to Insert or Edit Using an Intent</a>
13</ol>
14<h2>You should also read</h2>
15<ul>
16    <li>
17        <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/providers/content-provider-basics.html">
18        Content Provider Basics
19        </a>
20    </li>
21    <li>
22        <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/providers/contacts-provider.html">
23        Contacts Provider
24        </a>
25    </li>
26    <li>
27        <a href="{@docRoot}guide/components/intents-filters.html">Intents and Intent Filters</a>
28    </li>
29</ul>
30
31<h2>Try it out</h2>
32
33<div class="download-box">
34    <a href="http://developer.android.com/shareables/training/ContactsList.zip" class="button">
35    Download the sample
36    </a>
37 <p class="filename">ContactsList.zip</p>
38</div>
39
40</div>
41</div>
42<p>
43    This lesson shows you how to use an {@link android.content.Intent} to insert a new contact or
44    modify a contact's data. Instead of accessing the Contacts Provider directly, an
45    {@link android.content.Intent} starts the contacts app, which runs the appropriate
46    {@link android.app.Activity}. For the modification actions described in this lesson,
47    if you send extended data in the {@link android.content.Intent} it's entered into the UI of the
48    {@link android.app.Activity} that is started.
49</p>
50<p>
51    Using an {@link android.content.Intent} to insert or update a single contact is the preferred
52    way of modifying the Contacts Provider, for the following reasons:
53</p>
54<ul>
55    <li>It saves you the time and and effort of developing your own UI and code.</li>
56    <li>
57        It avoids introducing errors caused by modifications that don't follow the
58        Contacts Provider's rules.
59    </li>
60    <li>
61        It reduces the number of permissions you need to request. Your app doesn't need permission
62        to write to the Contacts Provider, because it delegates modifications to the contacts app,
63        which already has that permission.
64    </li>
65</ul>
66<h2 id="InsertContact">Insert a New Contact Using an Intent</h2>
67<p>
68    You often want to allow the user to insert a new contact when your app receives new data. For
69    example, a restaurant review app can allow users to add the restaurant as a contact as they're
70    reviewing it. To do this using an intent, create the intent using as much data as you have
71    available, and then send the intent to the contacts app.
72</p>
73<p>
74    Inserting a contact using the contacts app inserts a new <em>raw</em> contact into the Contacts
75    Provider's {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.RawContacts} table.  If necessary,
76    the contacts app prompts users for the account type and account to use when creating the raw
77    contact. The contacts app also notifies users if the raw contact already exists. Users then have
78    option of canceling the insertion, in which case no contact is created. To learn
79    more about raw contacts, see the
80    <a href="{@docRoot}guide/topics/providers/contacts-provider.html">Contacts Provider</a>
81    API guide.
82</p>
83
84<h3>Create an Intent</h3>
85<p>
86    To start, create a new {@link android.content.Intent} object with the action
87    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Intents.Insert#ACTION Intents.Insert.ACTION}.
88    Set the MIME type to {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.RawContacts#CONTENT_TYPE
89    RawContacts.CONTENT_TYPE}. For example:
90</p>
91<pre>
92...
93// Creates a new Intent to insert a contact
94Intent intent = new Intent(Intents.Insert.ACTION);
95// Sets the MIME type to match the Contacts Provider
96intent.setType(ContactsContract.RawContacts.CONTENT_TYPE);
97</pre>
98<p>
99    If you already have details for the contact, such as a phone number or email address, you can
100    insert them into the intent as extended data. For a key value, use the appropriate constant from
101    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Intents.Insert Intents.Insert}. The contacts app
102    displays the data in its insert screen, allowing users to make further edits and additions.
103</p>
104<pre>
105/* Assumes EditText fields in your UI contain an email address
106 * and a phone number.
107 *
108 */
109private EditText mEmailAddress = (EditText) findViewById(R.id.email);
110private EditText mPhoneNumber = (EditText) findViewById(R.id.phone);
111...
112/*
113 * Inserts new data into the Intent. This data is passed to the
114 * contacts app's Insert screen
115 */
116// Inserts an email address
117intent.putExtra(Intents.Insert.EMAIL, mEmailAddress.getText())
118/*
119 * In this example, sets the email type to be a work email.
120 * You can set other email types as necessary.
121 */
122      .putExtra(Intents.Insert.EMAIL_TYPE, CommonDataKinds.Email.TYPE_WORK)
123// Inserts a phone number
124      .putExtra(Intents.Insert.PHONE, mPhoneNumber.getText())
125/*
126 * In this example, sets the phone type to be a work phone.
127 * You can set other phone types as necessary.
128 */
129      .putExtra(Intents.Insert.PHONE_TYPE, Phone.TYPE_WORK);
130
131</pre>
132<p>
133    Once you've created the {@link android.content.Intent}, send it by calling
134    {@link android.support.v4.app.Fragment#startActivity startActivity()}.
135</p>
136<pre>
137    /* Sends the Intent
138     */
139    startActivity(intent);
140</pre>
141<p>
142    This call opens a screen in the contacts app that allows users to enter a new contact. The
143    account type and account name for the contact is listed at the top of the screen. Once users
144    enter the data and click <i>Done</i>, the contacts app's contact list appears. Users return to
145    your app by clicking <i>Back</i>.
146</p>
147<h2 id="EditContact">Edit an Existing Contact Using an Intent</h2>
148<p>
149    Editing an existing contact using an {@link android.content.Intent} is useful if the user
150    has already chosen a contact of interest. For example, an app that finds contacts that have
151    postal addresses but lack a postal code could give users the option of looking up the code and
152    then adding it to the contact.
153</p>
154<p>
155    To edit an existing contact using an intent, use a procedure similar to
156    inserting a contact. Create an intent as described in the section
157    <a href="#InsertContact">Insert a New Contact Using an Intent</a>, but add the contact's
158    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#CONTENT_LOOKUP_URI
159    Contacts.CONTENT_LOOKUP_URI} and the MIME type
160    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE
161    Contacts.CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE} to the intent. If you want to edit the contact with details you
162    already have, you can put them in the intent's extended data. Notice that some
163    name columns can't be edited using an intent; these columns are listed in the summary
164    section of the API reference for the class {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts}
165    under the heading "Update".
166</p>
167<p>
168    Finally, send the intent. In response, the contacts app displays an edit screen. When the user
169    finishes editing and saves the edits, the contacts app displays a contact list. When the user
170    clicks <i>Back</i>, your app is displayed.
171</p>
172<div class="sidebox-wrapper">
173<div class="sidebox">
174    <h2>Contacts Lookup Key</h2>
175    <p>
176        A contact's {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.ContactsColumns#LOOKUP_KEY} value is
177        the identifier that you should use to retrieve a contact. It remains constant,
178        even if the provider changes the contact's row ID to handle internal operations.
179    </p>
180</div>
181</div>
182<h3>Create the Intent</h3>
183<p>
184    To edit a contact, call {@link android.content.Intent#Intent Intent(action)} to
185    create an intent with the action {@link android.content.Intent#ACTION_EDIT}. Call
186    {@link android.content.Intent#setDataAndType setDataAndType()} to set the data value for the
187    intent to the contact's {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#CONTENT_LOOKUP_URI
188    Contacts.CONTENT_LOOKUP_URI} and the MIME type to
189    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE
190    Contacts.CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE} MIME type; because a call to
191    {@link android.content.Intent#setType setType()} overwrites the current data value for the
192    {@link android.content.Intent}, you must set the data and the MIME type at the same time.
193</p>
194<p>
195    To get a contact's {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#CONTENT_LOOKUP_URI
196    Contacts.CONTENT_LOOKUP_URI}, call
197    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#getLookupUri
198    Contacts.getLookupUri(id, lookupkey)} with the contact's
199    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#_ID Contacts._ID} and
200    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#LOOKUP_KEY Contacts.LOOKUP_KEY} values as
201    arguments.
202</p>
203<p>
204    The following snippet shows you how to create an intent:
205</p>
206<pre>
207    // The Cursor that contains the Contact row
208    public Cursor mCursor;
209    // The index of the lookup key column in the cursor
210    public int mLookupKeyIndex;
211    // The index of the contact's _ID value
212    public int mIdIndex;
213    // The lookup key from the Cursor
214    public String mCurrentLookupKey;
215    // The _ID value from the Cursor
216    public long mCurrentId;
217    // A content URI pointing to the contact
218    Uri mSelectedContactUri;
219    ...
220    /*
221     * Once the user has selected a contact to edit,
222     * this gets the contact's lookup key and _ID values from the
223     * cursor and creates the necessary URI.
224     */
225    // Gets the lookup key column index
226    mLookupKeyIndex = mCursor.getColumnIndex(Contacts.LOOKUP_KEY);
227    // Gets the lookup key value
228    mCurrentLookupKey = mCursor.getString(mLookupKeyIndex);
229    // Gets the _ID column index
230    mIdIndex = mCursor.getColumnIndex(Contacts._ID);
231    mCurrentId = mCursor.getLong(mIdIndex);
232    mSelectedContactUri =
233            Contacts.getLookupUri(mCurrentId, mCurrentLookupKey);
234    ...
235    // Creates a new Intent to edit a contact
236    Intent editIntent = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_EDIT);
237    /*
238     * Sets the contact URI to edit, and the data type that the
239     * Intent must match
240     */
241    editIntent.setDataAndType(mSelectedContactUri,Contacts.CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE);
242</pre>
243<h3>Add the navigation flag</h3>
244<p>
245    In Android 4.0 (API version 14) and later, a problem in the contacts app causes incorrect
246    navigation. When your app sends an edit intent to the contacts app, and users edit and save a
247    contact, when they click <i>Back</i> they see the contacts list screen. To navigate back to
248    your app, they have to click <i>Recents</i> and choose your app.
249</p>
250<p>
251    To work around this problem in Android 4.0.3 (API version 15) and later, add the extended
252    data key {@code finishActivityOnSaveCompleted} to the intent, with a value of {@code true}.
253    Android versions prior to Android 4.0 accept this key, but it has no effect. To set the
254    extended data, do the following:
255</p>
256<pre>
257    // Sets the special extended data for navigation
258    editIntent.putExtra("finishActivityOnSaveCompleted", true);
259</pre>
260<h3>Add other extended data</h3>
261<p>
262    To add additional extended data to the {@link android.content.Intent}, call
263    {@link android.content.Intent#putExtra putExtra()} as desired.
264    You can add extended data for common contact fields by using the key values specified in
265    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Intents.Insert Intents.Insert}. Remember that some
266    columns in the {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts} table can't be modified.
267    These columns are listed in the summary section of the API reference for the class
268    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts} under the heading "Update".
269</p>
270
271<h3>Send the Intent</h3>
272<p>
273    Finally, send the intent you've constructed. For example:
274</p>
275<pre>
276    // Sends the Intent
277    startActivity(editIntent);
278</pre>
279<h2 id="InsertEdit">Let Users Choose to Insert or Edit Using an Intent</h2>
280<p>
281    You can allow users to choose whether to insert a contact or edit an existing one by sending
282    an {@link android.content.Intent} with the action
283    {@link android.content.Intent#ACTION_INSERT_OR_EDIT}. For example, an email client app could
284    allow users to add an incoming email address to a new contact, or add it as an additional
285    address for an existing contact. Set the MIME type for this intent to
286    {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Contacts#CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE Contacts.CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE},
287    but don't set the data URI.
288</p>
289<p>
290    When you send this intent, the contacts app displays a list of contacts.
291    Users can either insert a new contact or pick an existing contact and edit it.
292    Any extended data fields you add to the intent populates the screen that appears. You can use
293    any of the key values specified in {@link android.provider.ContactsContract.Intents.Insert
294    Intents.Insert}. The following code snippet shows how to construct and send the intent:
295</p>
296<pre>
297    // Creates a new Intent to insert or edit a contact
298    Intent intentInsertEdit = new Intent(Intent.ACTION_INSERT_OR_EDIT);
299    // Sets the MIME type
300    intentInsertEdit.setType(Contacts.CONTENT_ITEM_TYPE);
301    // Add code here to insert extended data, if desired
302    ...
303    // Sends the Intent with an request ID
304    startActivity(intentInsertEdit);
305</pre>
306