Android: inflating search suggestions from network

In android, we can provide suggestions to user on serach. The custom suggestions are the suggestions that you provide the application rather than the suggestions based on user history.

So the data for the suggestions can be either from data of your application or from network. Here we are going to add the data from our network based on the input text in the search box. We are performing search using search dailog in action bar. Set up search in menu of your activity as:

<menu xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
      xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto">

    <item
        android:id="@+id/search"
        app:actionViewClass="android.support.v7.widget.SearchView"
        android:icon="@drawable/ic_search"
        app:showAsAction="collapseActionView|always"
        android:title="@string/Search"/>
</menu>

<menu xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"

xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto">

<item

android:id="@+id/search"

app:actionViewClass="android.support.v7.widget.SearchView"

android:icon="@drawable/ic_search"

app:showAsAction="collapseActionView|always"

android:title="@string/Search"/>

</menu>

Now set the searchable.xml file which we will store in res/xml folder

<searchable
    xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:hint="@string/search_hint"
    android:label="@string/app_name"
    android:searchMode="queryRewriteFromText"
    android:searchSettingsDescription="string resource"
    android:searchSuggestThreshold="2"
    android:textColorHint="@color/white"
    android:searchSuggestSelection = " ?"
    android:searchSuggestIntentAction="android.intent.action.SEARCH">
</searchable>

<searchable

xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"

android:hint="@string/search_hint"

android:label="@string/app_name"

android:searchMode="queryRewriteFromText"

android:searchSettingsDescription="string resource"

android:searchSuggestThreshold="2"

android:textColorHint="@color/white"

android:searchSuggestSelection = " ?"

android:searchSuggestIntentAction="android.intent.action.SEARCH">

</searchable>

Now inflate the menu and add suggestions to your search dailog

@Override
	public boolean onCreateOptionsMenu(Menu menu) {
		getMenuInflater().inflate(R.menu.home, menu);

        MenuItem searchItem = menu.findItem(R.id.search);
        final SearchView searchView = (SearchView) MenuItemCompat.getActionView(searchItem);

        SearchManager searchManager = (SearchManager) getSystemService(Context.SEARCH_SERVICE);
        searchView.setSearchableInfo(searchManager.getSearchableInfo(getComponentName()));

        final List<String> suggestions = new ArrayList<>();
        
        final CursorAdapter suggestionAdapter = new SimpleCursorAdapter(this,
                android.R.layout.simple_list_item_1,
                null,
                new String[]{SearchManager.SUGGEST_COLUMN_TEXT_1},
                new int[]{android.R.id.text1},
                0);

        searchView.setSuggestionsAdapter(suggestionAdapter);

        searchView.setOnSuggestionListener(new SearchView.OnSuggestionListener() {
            @Override
            public boolean onSuggestionSelect(int position) {
                return false;
            }

            @Override
            public boolean onSuggestionClick(int position) {
                searchView.setQuery(suggestions.get(position), true);
                searchView.clearFocus();
                return true;
            }
        });
        searchView.setOnQueryTextListener(new SearchView.OnQueryTextListener() {
            @Override
            public boolean onQueryTextSubmit(String query) {
                return false; //false if you want implicit call to searchable activity 
                              // or true if you want to handle submit yourself
            }

            @Override
            public boolean onQueryTextChange(String newText) {
                // Hit the network and take all the suggestions and store them in List 'suggestions'
                
                String[] columns = { BaseColumns._ID, 
                                        SearchManager.SUGGEST_COLUMN_TEXT_1,
                                        SearchManager.SUGGEST_COLUMN_INTENT_DATA,
                                    };
                MatrixCursor cursor = new MatrixCursor(columns);
                for (int i = 0; i < suggestions.size(); i++) {
                    String[] tmp = {Integer.toString(i),suggestions.get(i),suggestions.get(i)};
                    cursor.addRow(tmp);
                }
                suggestionAdapter.swapCursor(cursor);
                return true;
            }
        });
	return super.onCreateOptionsMenu(menu);
}

@Override

public boolean onCreateOptionsMenu(Menu menu) {

getMenuInflater().inflate(R.menu.home, menu);

MenuItem searchItem = menu.findItem(R.id.search);

final SearchView searchView = (SearchView) MenuItemCompat.getActionView(searchItem);

SearchManager searchManager = (SearchManager) getSystemService(Context.SEARCH_SERVICE);

searchView.setSearchableInfo(searchManager.getSearchableInfo(getComponentName()));

final List<String> suggestions = new ArrayList<>();

final CursorAdapter suggestionAdapter = new SimpleCursorAdapter(this,

android.R.layout.simple_list_item_1,

null,

new String[]{SearchManager.SUGGEST_COLUMN_TEXT_1},

new int[]{android.R.id.text1},

0);

searchView.setSuggestionsAdapter(suggestionAdapter);

searchView.setOnSuggestionListener(new SearchView.OnSuggestionListener() {

@Override

public boolean onSuggestionSelect(int position) {

return false;

}

@Override

public boolean onSuggestionClick(int position) {

searchView.setQuery(suggestions.get(position), true);

searchView.clearFocus();

return true;

}

});

searchView.setOnQueryTextListener(new SearchView.OnQueryTextListener() {

@Override

public boolean onQueryTextSubmit(String query) {

return false; //false if you want implicit call to searchable activity

// or true if you want to handle submit yourself

}

@Override

public boolean onQueryTextChange(String newText) {

// Hit the network and take all the suggestions and store them in List 'suggestions'

String[] columns = { BaseColumns._ID,

SearchManager.SUGGEST_COLUMN_TEXT_1,

SearchManager.SUGGEST_COLUMN_INTENT_DATA,

};

MatrixCursor cursor = new MatrixCursor(columns);

for (int i = 0; i < suggestions.size(); i++) {

String[] tmp = {Integer.toString(i),suggestions.get(i),suggestions.get(i)};

cursor.addRow(tmp);

}

suggestionAdapter.swapCursor(cursor);

return true;

}

});

return super.onCreateOptionsMenu(menu);

}

And by this you can get your search suggestion from network.

Aastha

I am currently working as Android Developer at Webkul Software PVT LTD. I love to explore new things within and outside my field.

15 Dec, 2016
Updated by - Aastha
24 Feb, 2016
Created by - Aastha

. . .

4 comments

Thiago 6 years ago

That’s amazing ! Succinct, to the point and very explanatory!
Thank you!

Vishal ;) 7 years ago

lot of thanks …

Disha S 8 years ago

you saved my day girl !!

aastha gupta 8 years ago
Thank you so much.

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