How to set a timer in android

Question

What is the proper way to set a timer in android in order to kick off a task (a function that I create which does not change the UI)? Use this the Java way: http://docs.ora

Answer 1

I used to use (Timer, TimerTask) as well as Handler to kick off (time-consuming) tasks periodically. Now I've switched the whole to RxJava. RxJava provides Observable.timer which is simpler, less error-prone, hassle-free to use.

public class BetterTimerFragment extends Fragment {
  public static final String TAG = "BetterTimer";
  private TextView timeView;
  private Subscription timerSubscription;

  @Override
  public View onCreateView(LayoutInflater inflater,
                           @Nullable ViewGroup container,
                           @Nullable Bundle savedInstanceState) {
    return inflater.inflate(R.layout.fragment_timer, container, false);
  }

  @Override
  public void onViewCreated(View view, @Nullable Bundle savedInstanceState) {
    super.onViewCreated(view, savedInstanceState);
    timeView = (TextView) view.findViewById(R.id.timeView);
  }

  @Override
  public void onResume() {
    super.onResume();

    // Right after the app is visible to users, delay 2 seconds
    // then kick off a (heavy) task every 10 seconds.
    timerSubscription = Observable.timer(2, 10, TimeUnit.SECONDS)
        .map(new Func1() {
          @Override
          public String call(Long unused) {
            // TODO: Probably do time-consuming work here.
            // This runs on a different thread than the main thread.
            return "Time: " + System.currentTimeMillis();
          }
        })
        .observeOn(AndroidSchedulers.mainThread())
        .subscribe(new Action1() {
          @Override
          public void call(String timeText) {
            // The result will then be propagated back to the main thread.
            timeView.setText(timeText);
          }
        }, new Action1() {
          @Override
          public void call(Throwable throwable) {
            Log.e(TAG, throwable.getMessage(), throwable);
          }
        });
  }

  @Override
  public void onPause() {
    super.onPause();

    // Don't kick off tasks when the app gets invisible.
    timerSubscription.unsubscribe();
  }
}