This document provides an overview of table views in iOS, including that they display lists of items in rows and columns, can be dynamic or static, use table view controllers or be added directly to a view, come in plain or grouped styles, represent data with table view cells, and require implementing the UITableViewDataSource and UITableViewDelegate protocols to provide data and customize behavior. Key methods include numberOfSections, numberOfRowsInSection, cellForRowAt to provide cells, and reloadData to refresh the table.

1. Unit 4—Lesson 5:
Table Views

2. Table views
An instance of the UITableView class
A subclass of UIScrollView
• Displays a list of items
• Displays one or possibly thousands of data objects
• Presents vertical scrolling and single-column, multiple rows
• Provides customizable options

3. Types
Table views
Dynamic Static
When content changes When content doesn’t changes

4. Table view controllers
Anatomy of a table view
Two possible approaches to add table views:
• Add a table view instance directly to a view
controller’s view
• Add a table view controller to your
storyboard

5. Table view styles
Anatomy of a table view
Plain Grouped

6. Table view cells (UITableViewCell)
Anatomy of a table view
tableView(_:accessoryButtonTappedForRowWith:)
Every row is represented with a table view cell
In editing mode, the cell content shrinks
Cell content Accessory view
Cell content Reordering controlEditing control

7. UITableViewCell properties
Anatomy of a table view
Cell property Description
textLabel UILabel for the title
detailTextLabel UILabel for the subtitle
imageView UIImageView for an image
UITableViewCell class defines three properties for cell content

8. UITableViewCellStyle
Anatomy of a table view
Storyboard name Programmatic enum name Displays
Basic .default textLabel, imageView
Subtitle .subtitle textlabel , detailTextLabel, imageView
Right detail .value1 textlabel , detailTextLabel, imageView
Left detail .value2 textLabel , detailTextLabel

9. Table view readability margins
Anatomy of a table view
Set tableView.cellLayoutMarginsFollowReadableWidth to true
AdjustedDefault

10. Index paths
Points to a specific row in a specific section
Accessible through the row and section properties
• indexPath.row
• indexPath.section
Values are zero-based

11. Arrays and table views
Collection of similar data
Typically backed by a collection of model objects
var emojis: [Emoji]
[Emoji(symbol: Character("😀"), name: "Grinning Face", description: "A typical smiley face.",
usage: "happiness"),
Emoji(symbol: Character("😕"), name: "Confused Face", description: "A confused, puzzled face.",
usage: "unsure what to think; displeasure"),
Emoji(symbol: Character("😍"), name: "Heart Eyes", description: "A smiley face with hearts for
eyes.", usage: "love of something; attractive")]

12. Cell dequeueing
Arrays and table views
Table views only load visible cells
Saves memory
Allows for a smooth flow when scrolling
let cell: UITableViewCell = tableView.dequeueReusableCell(withIdentifier: "Cell", for:
indexPath)

13. Table view protocols
Protocol Description
UITableViewDataSource Provides data for populating sections and rows
UITableViewDelegate (optional) Customizes appearance and behavior

14. Number of sections
Table view data source (UITableViewDataSource)
optional func numberOfSections(in tableView: UITableView)
-> Int
If function isn’t provided, the table view assumes
one section

15. Number of rows in a section
Table view data source (UITableViewDataSource)
func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView,
numberOfRowsInSection section: Int) -> Int

16. Cell for row at index path
Table view data source (UITableViewDataSource)
func tableView(_ tableView: UITableView,
cellForRowAt indexPath: IndexPath) -> UITableViewCell

17. Optional
Table view delegate (UITableViewDelegate)
Responding to accessory view interaction
tableView(_:accessoryButtonTappedForRowWith:)
Responding to user interaction
tableView(_:didSelectRowAt:)

18. Reload data
reloadData()
To force a data refresh

19. Table Views
Unit 4—Lesson 5
Learn how to create dynamic table views by
creating an emoji dictionary app

20. Lab: Meal Tracker
Unit 4—Lesson 5
Practice with the UITableViewDataSource and UITableViewController by
creating an app that will display a list of foods, grouped into three sections, one for
each meal of the day

21. © 2017 Apple Inc.
This work is licensed by Apple Inc. under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license.