Android RecyclerView addition & removal of items

Interaction: click events and item removal

To allow user-specific item removal through UI interactions, like a click event, handle the specifics in the RecyclerView.ViewHolder class.

imageView.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
    @Override
    public void onClick(View v) {
        int position = getAdapterPosition(); // Never getPosition, seriously it's so 2015
        if(position != RecyclerView.NO_POSITION) {
            dataList.remove(position);
            adapter.notifyItemRemoved(position);
            adapter.notifyItemRangeChanged(position, dataList.size());
        }
    }
});
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Remember to replace deprecated getPosition with the shiny getAdapterPosition for consistent results.

Data operations: adding items

When adding items, keep the dance between your data and RecyclerView smooth:

public void addItem(int position, DataType item) {
    dataList.add(position, item);
    notifyItemInserted(position); // Voila, new item inserted, crowd goes wild
}
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Hello Kotlin developers 👋, use the add or removeAt methods for cleaner syntax!

Visualization

Adding an item gives your RecyclerView more power:

🔋 ➕ 🔌 = [🔌, 🔌, 🔌, 🔌]
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For item removal it's like unplugging:

🔋 ➖ 🔌 = [🔌, 🔌, 🔌]


In both scenarios, the battery 🔋 (your RecyclerView) remains packed and ready for action while the plugs 🔌 (your items) join or leave the party.

Big players: libraries for easier management

While native RecyclerView is pretty robust, libraries like FastAdapter, Epoxy, or Groupie can make data management feel like slicing butter. Ever dreamed of built-in click listeners and view binding? Some of these libraries have them.

When the going gets big: handling large datasets

For large datasets, count every clock tick. You'll want to ensure removal and addition operations are as sleek as possible. For extensive updates, DiffUtil works magic by calculating the minimal number of updates necessary.

Change the stage: optimizing visual display

Your RecyclerView's visual display can also enjoy a renaissance. Experiment with GridLayoutManager or StaggeredGridLayoutManager if your design calls for it. The world is your LayoutManager.

Guidance clarity: be the signpost

Adding visual examples or links to your explanations is like adding subtitles to a foreign movie - suddenly everything is clearer. And remember - accurate index handling during item addition and removal is key to avoid dramas.

Fast and responsive: timely updates

Just like a courteous butler, your RecyclerView adapter should immediately reflect changes in your dataset. After any removal or addition, the RecyclerView layout should be updated promptly.

Hiding in plain sight: removing items without saying goodbye

If you want to just hide the views instead of removing them you can sneakily set the visibility of itemView to View.GONE. Remember, this just hides the item from your eyes, it's still there, lurking in the data set.