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Editing and saving an ArrayList<> that has been passed to another activity

I am making a frisbee logger and have an ArrayList of Team objects. Each Team has an ArrayList of Player objects. Everything is using Serializable properly to be sent using Intent.
In my main activity I am displaying the list of Team objects in a ListView and an option to add another Team (only a name is needed). Once a Team is selected I pass the object to another activity using Intent. On this second activity I have it display the list of Player objects and have fields to enter another player object into the passed list.
When I return to the main activity and go back to the add Player activity, what I have added is gone.
I cannot use static because there is obviously more than one Team object. I think passing back the changed ArrayList could work but that seems a little lame, time-consuming, and frustrating.
Is there a built-in way in Android Studio that does this or am I on my own?
Note: I am not using SQLite as suggested in the comments
There's not a whole lot to show on this but here it is I guess:
MainActivity.java
private static ArrayList<Team> listOfTeams = new ArrayList<>();
private static ArrayList<Game> listOfGames = new ArrayList<>();
private ListView gameList, teamList;
.....
teamList.setOnItemClickListener(new AdapterView.OnItemClickListener() {
#Override
public void onItemClick(AdapterView<?> parent, View view, int position, long id) {
Team t = (Team)teamList.getItemAtPosition(position);
viewTeam(t);
}
});
.....
//Item select in teamList. Start the TeamViewActivity
public void viewTeam(Team t)
{
Intent i = new Intent(this, TeamViewActivity.class);
i.putExtra("teamView",t);
startActivity(i);
}
TeamViewActivity.java
private Team team;
private ListView rosterList;
#Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
setContentView(R.layout.activity_team_view);
rosterList = (ListView) findViewById(R.id.playerList);
Intent i = getIntent();
Bundle extras = i.getExtras();
if(extras!=null)
{
if(extras.get("teamView")!=null)
{
team = (Team) extras.get("teamView");
}
}
populateRosterList(team.getRoster());
}
public void addPlayerToRoster(View view)
{
String checkFirst = ((EditText) findViewById(R.id.firstText)).getText().toString();
String checkLast = ((EditText) findViewById(R.id.lastText)).getText().toString();
String checkNumber = ((EditText) findViewById(R.id.numberText)).getText().toString();
if(!checkNumber.equals(""))
{
team.addPlayer(checkFirst, checkLast, Integer.parseInt(checkNumber));
((EditText) findViewById(R.id.firstText)).setText("");
((EditText) findViewById(R.id.lastText)).setText("");
((EditText) findViewById(R.id.numberText)).setText("");
populateRosterList(team.getRoster());
}
}
public void returnToMain(View view)
{
Intent i = new Intent(this, MainActivity.class);
i.putExtra("teamView", team);
startActivity(i);
}
private void populateRosterList(ArrayList<Player> list)
{
ArrayAdapter<Player> adapter = new ArrayAdapter<>(this,
R.layout.activity_list, R.id.genericText, list);
rosterList.setAdapter(adapter);
}

Consider your concept:
You serialize an object, i.e. you transform it into a transferrable format which is then copied over to the other activity and reconstructed as a new instance.
Consequently, you alter another instance, which is not available in the previous activity, if you do not return it - again, serialized - and finally reconstruct and copy it back into the respective instance.
What you need is a shared memory storage in your application, which can alter and retrieve data cross-activity OR a proper data routing using Intents w/ ISerializable.
Options:
Always serialize objects and pass and copy them around.
-> No multithreaded alteration, possibly slow, unbeautiful
Singleton application with global data storage ir Context Object (I do NOT recommend the due to memory management and Garbage
Collection inbetween Activity Switches BUT for consistency I'd
wanted to mention this option)
SQLite3
-> Quick, Simple and Scalable, But a bit cumbersome to get started with
Any other file-structure stored and maintained in the data folder
-> I'd expect a lot of boilerplate code here, and low performance
Webservice and remote database
Proper component setup, i.e. initialize all accessing components in your software with the appropriate reference to the data structs using for example fragments (Thanks to #mismanc, I actually missed that option initially)
In general you could abstract all that away using services and repositories, which allows you to under-the-hood test options like 3. 4. And 5. and find your best solution, and in addition, keeo the accessing code simple and clean.

in your case, you can use startActivityForResult instead of startActivity, then get your modified Team object from onActivityResult(int requestCode, int resultCode, Intent data) to update your list.
startActivityForResult example

You can use fragments. You hold the list in the MainActivity and pass its reference to ShowListFragment and AddPlayerFragment by interfaces. And you can also do other operations over them. If you dont want to use json or sqlite it can be a good way for you.
MainActivity.java
public class MainActivity extends Activity implements ShowListener{
public interface ShowListener{
ArrayList<Team> getTeamList();
}
private ArrayList<Team> listOfTeams = new ArrayList<>();
#Override
public ArrayList<Team> getTeamList() {
return listOfTeams;
}
}
ShowListFragment.java
public class ShowListFragment extends Fragment {
private ArrayList<Team> listOfTeams;
private ShowListener listener;
#Override
public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
listener = (ShowListener)getActivity();
listOfTeams = listener.getTeamList();
}
}

As #Kingfisher Phuoc mentioned you could use srartActivityForResult in case you don't want to change your approach.
Otherwise I will suggest you use either :
SharedPreference to store your arraylist object (by converting the arraylist to json then store it as string in json format). In the PlayerActivity you retrieve the data, manipulate it then save it. see this post
SQLite

Can a fragment object created in MainActivity be passed as intent extra to other activity?

I have a class WeatherFragment that extends Fragment class. I created an instance of it in the launcher activity and inflated it in a layout. Is it possible for me to to send the fragment object as an intent extra to some other activity in my project instead of creating a new instance of WeatherFragment?
Don't have a code for this. Its just an interview question.

I think you can, but it will not be good. A quick search brought me to this question with an answer that said:
You wouldn't. At most, you would follow #Ribose's answer -- pass a flag into the activity via an extra to indicate what set of fragments to create.
Your question is not so specific. This question is specific to what the OP wants, but maybe one of the answers could help you.
P.S. If you would like to experiment though, you can have your WeatherFragment implement Parcelable. Then pass it from one activity to another activity through intent. This answer will tell you how and you could do it like so (modified to extend Fragment class)
public class WeatherFragment extends implements Parcelable {
#Override
public View onCreateView(LayoutInflater inflater, ViewGroup container,
Bundle savedInstanceState) {
return inflater.inflate(R.layout.fragment, container, false);
}
/* everything below here is for implementing Parcelable */
// 99.9% of the time you can just ignore this
public int describeContents() {
return 0;
}
// write your object's data to the passed-in Parcel
public void writeToParcel(Parcel out, int flags) {
//code
}
// this is used to regenerate your object. All Parcelables must have a CREATOR that implements these two methods
public static final Parcelable.Creator<MyParcelable> CREATOR = new Parcelable.Creator<MyParcelable>() {
public MyParcelable createFromParcel(Parcel in) {
return new MyParcelable(in);
}
public MyParcelable[] newArray(int size) {
return new MyParcelable[size];
}
};
// example constructor that takes a Parcel and gives you an object populated with it's values
private MyParcelable(Parcel in) {
//code
}
//other methods
}
Then, from the answer again, you can use it like so:
Intent intent = new Intent();
intent.putExtra(KEY_EXTRA, weatherFragment);
From the answer again (You really should read this answer), you get it like so:
Intent intent = getIntent();
WeatherFragment weatherFragment = (WeatherFragment) intent.getParcelableExtra(MainActivity.KEY_EXTRA);
I have not tested this so I'm not sure if it would work.

Between different Acitvities you can not since Fragment does not implement Serializable or Parcelable.
Sure you can make your Fragment implement those interfaces but this way you won't actually be passing Fragment, just some state of that Fragment which you then serialize yourself.
Within the same Activity you can have your fragment back when the Activity gets recreated if you use FragmentManager.putFragment() in onSaveState() and getFragment() in onCreate(). This is not needed usually.

Possible but I won't recommend it. But you can get the fragment object by using findFragmentById or findFragmentByTag to get the object.

Passing Data Between Activities in Android App

Hey I am pretty new to making android apps and I understand that the easiest way to pass data between two activities is through an intent.
In one of my classes (EventOptions.java), I call this line of code:
Intent i = new Intent(EventOptions.this, PhotoFetcher.class);
i.putExtra("imageArray", imageIDs);
startActivity(i);
imageIDs is a string array
In my PhotoFetcher class, I want to set a string array called imageIDs to the imageIDs string array that I am passing through the intent.
I want to set images as a global variable in my class:
public class MainActivity extends Activity implements View.OnClickListener{
Intent it = getIntent();
String[] imageIDs = it.getStringArrayExtra("imageArray");
...
}
This crashes my app however. Is this not allowed? And if so, how can I fix it? Thanks in advance!

Need to call getIntent() in a method instead of at class level. call it inside onCreate :
public void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState){
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
// get Intent here
Intent it = getIntent();
String[] imageIDs = it.getStringArrayExtra("imageArray");
}
if I want to use the imageIDs array in another public class defined
in my PhotoFetcher class, do I need to call it again?
To get imageIDsin PhotoFetcher class either declare String[] imageIDs as global variable or pass imageIDs using PhotoFetcher class constructor

You have to use putStringArrayListExtra. You can convert your String[] to an ArrayList first.
Like so
ArrayList<String> arrayList = new ArrayList<String>(Arrays.asList(imageIDs));
Intent i = new Intent(EventOptions.this, PhotoFetcher.class);
i.putStringArrayListExtra("imageArray", arrayList);
startActivity(i);
And then you can fetch it like you do, preferably in onCreate or after that call.
Intent it = getIntent();
ArrayList<String> imageIDs = it.getStringArrayListExtra("imageArray");

Share data without persisting to disk
It is possible to share data between activities by saving it in memory given that, in most cases, both activities run in the same process.
Note: sometimes, when the user leaves your activity (without quitting it), Android may decide to kill your application. In such scenario, I have experienced cases in which android attempts to launch the last activity using the intent provided before the app was killed. In this cases, data stored in a singleton (either yours or Application) will be gone and bad things could happen. To avoid such cases, you either persist objects to disk or check data before using it to make sure its valid.
Use a singleton class
Have a class to whole the data:
public class DataHolder {
private String data;
public String getData() {return data;}
public void setData(String data) {this.data = data;}
private static final DataHolder holder = new DataHolder();
public static DataHolder getInstance() {return holder;}
}
From the launched activity:
String data = DataHolder.getInstance().getData();
Use application singleton (I would recommend this)
The application singleton is an instance of android.app.Application which is created when the app is launched. You can provide a custom one by extending Application:
import android.app.Application;
public class MyApplication extends Application {
private String data;
public String getData() {return data;}
public void setData(String data) {this.data = data;}
}
Before launching the activity:
MyApplication app = (MyApplication) getApplicationContext();
app.setData(someData);
Then, from the launched activity:
MyApplication app = (MyApplication) getApplicationContext();
String data = app.getData();

ρяσѕρєя K hit the nail on the head, you're running a method where constructors and fields go. To make the variables (the imageIDs) global, it's quite simple and there are a few ways of doing it. Declare them outside any method, and then assign them in your onCreate or onResume (which will always be called).
Try this:
public class MainActivity extends Activity implements View.OnClickListener {
//global variable
String[] imageIDs;
#Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
// get Intent here
Intent it = getIntent();
imageIDs = it.getStringArrayExtra("imageArray");
}
}

How to use getIntent() in a class that does not extend Activity?

I am trying to pass a String from a class "Play" which extends Activity by using:
Bundle data = new Bundle();
Intent i = new Intent(Play.this, Receive.class);
String category;
data.putString("key", category);
i.putExtras(data);
Then, the "Receive" class which is a non Activity class and does not extend Activity will receive the String from "Play".
But when I try to receive the data using this code:
Bundle receive = new Bundle();
String passed;
receive = getIntent().getExtras();
passed = receive.getString("key");
I get an error on the word "getIntent()" and suggests me to create a method getIntent().
What is the possible solution to this problem?
THANKS!

Intent is not nessesary here. You can just do something like this:
Play.class :
public String getCategory() {
return category;
}
and in Receiver.class :
Play playObject = new Play();
passed = playObject.getCategory();
Or you can use static field as pKs mentioned but it's not always a good pattern.

You should use a public static variable and use it to store data and fetch data from other class.
As intents don't work without extending Activity class in Android.
In your case , it would be like.
public static category="some category";
To access in another class ,
String dataFromActivity=NameOFClassWhereCategoryIsDefined.category;

You cannot getIntent(); from within a class that does not extend Activity. As Sprigg mentioned you would have to use other means of communication between the classes.

Passing custom objects between activities?

How do I pass custom objects between activites in android? I'm aware of bundles but I can't seem to see any functionality for this in them. Could anyone show me a nice example of this?

You should implement Parcelable interface.
Link to documentation.

Using Parcelable interface you can pass custom java object into the intent.
1) implement the Parcelable interface to your class like:
class Employee implements Parcelable
{
}
2) Pass the Parcelable object into the intent like:
Employee mEmployee =new Employee();
Intent mIntent = new Intent(mContect,Abc.class);
mIntent.putExtra("employee", mEmployee);
startActivity(mIntent);
3) Get the data into the new [Abc] Activity like:
Intent mIntent = getIntent();
Employee mEmployee = (Employee )mIntent.getParcelableExtra("employee");

a Parcel MIGHT solve your problem.
think of a Parcel as an "array" (metaphorical) of primitive types (long, String, Double, int, etc). if your custom class is composed of primitive types ONLY, then change your class declaration including implements Parcelable.
you can pass a parcelable object thru an intent with no difficulty whatsoever (just like you would send a primitive-typed object). in this case i have a parcelable custom class called FarmData (composed of longs, strings and doubles) which i pass from one activity to another via intent.
FarmData farmData = new FarmData();
// code that populates farmData - etc etc etc
Intent intent00 = new Intent(getApplicationContext(), com.example.yourpackage.yourclass.class);
intent00.putExtra("farmData",farmData);
startActivity(intent00);
but retrieving it may be tricky. the activity that receives the intent will check if a bundle of extras was send along with the intent.
Bundle extras = getIntent().getExtras();
FarmData farmData = new FarmData();
Intent intentIncoming = getIntent();
if(extras != null) {
farmData = (FarmData) intentIncoming.getParcelableExtra("farmData");// OK
}

Given an object PasswordState that implements Serializable throughout the object tree, you can pass this object to anther activity as in:
private void launchManagePassword() {
Intent i= new Intent(this, ManagePassword.class); // no param constructor
PasswordState outState= new PasswordState(lengthKey,timeExpire,isValidKey,timeoutType,"",model.getIsHashPassword());
Bundle b= new Bundle();
b.putSerializable("jalcomputing.confusetext.PasswordState", outState);
i.putExtras(b);
startActivityForResult(i,REQUEST_MANAGE_PASSWORD); // used for callback
}

One simple way to pass an object between activities or make a object common for all applicattion, is create a class extending Application.
Here is a example:
public class DadosComuns extends Application{
private String nomeUsuario="";
public String getNomeUsuario() {
return nomeUsuario;
}
public void setNomeUsuario(String str) {
nomeUsuario = str;
}
}
In all your others activities, you just need instantiate one object "DadosComuns", declarating as a Global Variable.
private DadosComuns dadosComuns;
#Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
//dados comuns
dadosComuns = ((DadosComuns)getApplicationContext());
dadosComuns.setNomeUsuario("userNameTest"); }
All others activities that you instantiate dadosComuns = ((DadosComuns)getApplicationContext()); you can acess getNomeUsuario() == "userNameTest"
In your AndroidManifest.xml you need to have
<application
android:name=".DadosComuns"