Message List

Message List — CometChat documentation.

Overview

MessageList is a Composite Component that displays a list of messages and effectively manages real-time operations. It includes various types of messages such as Text Messages, Media Messages, Stickers, and more.

MessageList is primarily a list of the base component MessageBubble. The MessageBubble Component is utilized to create different types of chat bubbles depending on the message type.

Usage

Integration

The following code snippet illustrates how you can directly incorporate the MessageList component into your layout.xml file.

XML

<com.cometchat.chatuikit.messagelist.CometChatMessageList
                android:id="@+id/message_list"
                android:layout_width="match_parent"
                android:layout_height="match_parent"
                android:layout_marginStart="16dp"
                android:layout_marginEnd="16dp"
                android:background="@android:color/transparent" />

Simply adding the MessageList component to the layout will only display the loading indicator. To fetch messages for a specific entity, you need to supplement it with User or Group Object.

---

Actions

Actions dictate how a component functions. They are divided into two types: Predefined and User-defined. You can override either type, allowing you to tailor the behavior of the component to fit your specific needs.

1. onThreadRepliesClick

onThreadRepliesClick is triggered when you click on the threaded message bubble. The onThreadRepliesClick action doesn’t have a predefined behavior. You can override this action using the following code snippet.

Java

messageList.setOnThreadRepliesClick((context, baseMessage, cometChatMessageTemplate, cometChatMessageBubble) -> {
    // Your action onclick
});

Kotlin

messageList.setOnThreadRepliesClick { context, baseMessage, cometChatMessageTemplate, cometChatMessageBubble ->
    // Your action onclick
}

setOnReactionClickListener

The listener to be set for reacting to a message.Pass a non-null instance of OnReactionClickListener to enable it.

Example

Java

YourActivity.java

 messageList.setOnReactionClickListener(new OnReactionClickListener() {
                    @Override
                    public void onClick(String reaction) {
                        Toast.makeText(this, reaction + "Clicked", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
                    }

                    @Override
                    public void onClick(BaseMessage baseMessage, String reaction) {
                    }
                });

Kotlin

messageList.setOnReactionClickListener(object : OnReactionClickListener {
        override fun onClick(reaction: String) {
            Toast.makeText(this, reaction + "Clicked", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
        }

        override fun onClick(baseMessage: BaseMessage, reaction: String) {}
    });

setOnAddReactionClickListener

The listener to be set for adding reactions to a message.Pass a non-null instance of OnAddReactionClickListener to enable it.

Example

Java

YourActivity.java

 messageList.setOnAddReactionClickListener(new OnAddReactionClickListener() {
                    @Override
                    public void onClick() {
                        Toast.makeText(YourActivity.this, "Clicked on Add reaction", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
                    }
                });

Kotlin

  messageList.setOnAddReactionClickListener {
        object : OnAddReactionClickListener {
            override fun onClick() {
                Toast.makeText(this, reaction + "Clicked on Add reaction", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show()
            }
        }
    }

2. onError

This action doesn’t change the behavior of the component but rather listens for any errors that occur in the MessageList component.

Java

YourActivity.java

messageList.setOnError(new OnError() {
    @Override
    public void onError(Context context, CometChatException e) {
        //Your Exception Handling code.
    }
});

Kotlin

YourActivity.kt

messageList.setOnError(object : OnError {
    override fun onError(context: Context, e: CometChatException) {
        // Your Exception Handling code.
    }
})

Filters

You can adjust the MessagesRequestBuilder in the MessageList Component to customize your message list. Numerous options are available to alter the builder to meet your specific needs. For additional details on MessagesRequestBuilder, please visit MessagesRequestBuilder.

In the example below, we are applying a filter to the messages based on a search substring and for a specific user. This means that only messages that contain the search term and are associated with the specified user will be displayed

Java

MessagesRequest.MessagesRequestBuilder messagesRequest = new MessagesRequest.MessagesRequestBuilder()
    .setSearchKeyword("your search keyword")
    .setUID("user uid");

messageList.setMessagesRequestBuilder(messagesRequest);

Kotlin

val messagesRequest = MessagesRequest.MessagesRequestBuilder()
    .setSearchKeyword("your search keyword")
    .setUID("user uid")
    .build()

messageList.messagesRequestBuilder = messagesRequest

The following parameters in messageRequestBuilder will always be altered inside the message list

1. UID
2. GUID
3. types
4. categories

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Events

Events are emitted by a Component. By using event you can extend existing functionality. Being global events, they can be applied in Multiple Locations and are capable of being Added or Removed.

The MessageList Component does not emit any events of its own.

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Customization

To fit your app’s design requirements, you can customize the appearance of the conversation component. We provide exposed methods that allow you to modify the experience and behavior according to your specific needs.

Style

Using Style you can customize the look and feel of the component in your app, These parameters typically control elements such as the color, size, shape, and fonts used within the component.

1. MessageList Style

You can set the MessageListStyle to the MessageList Component to customize the styling.

Java

MessageListStyle messageListStyle = new MessageListStyle();
    messageListStyle.setBackground(Color.BLACK);
    messageListStyle.setBorderColor(Color.WHITE);

    messageList.setStyle(messageListStyle);

Kotlin

val messageListStyle = MessageListStyle().apply {
    background = Color.BLACK
    borderColor = Color.WHITE
}

messageList.style = messageListStyle

List of properties exposed by MessageListStyle

Property	Description	Code
Border Width	used to set border width	.setBorderWidth(int)
Border Color	used to set border color	.setBorderColor(@ColorInt int)
Corner Radius	used to set corner radius	.setCornerRadius(int)
LoadingIcon Tint	used to set loading icon tint	.setLoadingIconTint(@ColorInt int)
EmptyText Appearance	used to set empty state text Appearance	.setLoadingIconTint(@StyleRes int)
ErrorText Appearance	used to set error text Appearance	.setErrorTextAppearance(@StyleRes int)
EmptyText Color	used to set empty state text color	.setEmptyTextColor(@ColorInt int)
ErrorText Color	used to set error state text color	.setErrorTextColor(@ColorInt int)
NameText Color	used to set sender/receiver name text color on a message bubble.	.setNameTextColor(@ColorInt int)
NameText Appearance	used to set sender/receiver name text appearance on a message bubble	.setNameTextAppearance(@StyleRes int)
TimeStampText Color	used to set time stamp text appearance	.setTimeStampTextAppearance(@StyleRes int)
ThreadReplySeparator Color	used to set thread reply separator color	.setThreadReplySeparatorColor(@ColorInt int)
ThreadReplyText Color	used to set thread reply text color	.setThreadReplyTextColor(@ColorInt int)
ThreadReplyText Appearance	used to set thread reply text appearance	.setThreadReplyTextAppearance(@StyleRes int)
ThreadReplyIcon Tint	used to set thread reply icon tint	.setThreadReplyIconTint(@ColorInt int)
Background	This method will set the background color for message list	.setBackground(@ColorInt int)
Background	This will set drawable component for list background	.setBackground(@drawable int)

2. Avatar Style

To apply customized styles to the Avatar component in the Conversations Component, you can use the following code snippet. For more information, visit Avatar Styles.

Java

AvatarStyle avatarStyle = new AvatarStyle();
avatarStyle.setBorderWidth(10);
avatarStyle.setBorderColor(Color.BLACK);
messageList.setAvatarStyle(avatarStyle);

Kotlin

val avatarStyle = AvatarStyle()
avatarStyle.borderWidth = 10
avatarStyle.borderColor = Color.BLACK
messageList.setAvatarStyle(avatarStyle)

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Functionality

These are a set of small functional customizations that allow you to fine-tune the overall experience of the component. With these, you can change text, set custom icons, and toggle the visibility of UI elements.

Java

CometChatMessageList messageList = findViewById(R.id.message_list);
messageList.setUser(user);
messageList.hideError(true);
messageList.hideReceipt(true);

Kotlin

val messageList = findViewById<CometChatMessageList>(R.id.message_list)
messageList.user = user
messageList.hideError(true)
messageList.hideReceipt(true)

Below is a list of customizations along with corresponding code snippets

Property	Description	Code
User 🛑	Used to pass user object of which header specific details will be shown	.setUser(user);
Group 🛑	Used to pass group object of which header specific details will be shown	.setGroup(Group);
Messages Alignment	used to set the alignmet of messages in CometChatMessageList. It can be either leftAligned or standard	.setAlignment(UIKitConstants.MessageListAlignment);
EmptyState Text	used to set text which will be visible when no messages are available	.emptyStateText("Your_EMPTY_STATE_TEXT");
ErrorState Text	used to set text which will be visible when error in messages retrieval	.errorStateText("Your_ERROR_STATE_TEXT");
Hide Error	used to toggle visibility of error in MessageList	.hideError(false);
Disable Sound For Messages	used to enable/disable sound for incoming/outgoing messages , default false	.disableSoundForMessages(false);
CustomSound For Messages	used to set custom sound for outgoing message	.setCustomSoundForMessages(@RawRes resource);
Set ReadIcon	used to set custom read icon visible at read receipt	.setReadIcon(@DrawableRes resource);
Set DeliverIcon	used to set custom delivered icon visible at read receipt	.setDeliverIcon(@DrawableRes resource);
Set SentIcon	used to set custom sent icon visible at read receipt	.setSentIcon(@DrawableRes resource);
Set SentIcon	used to set custom sent icon visible at read receipt	.setSentIcon(@DrawableRes resource);
Set WaitIcon	used to set custom wait icon visible at read receipt	.setWaitIconIcon(@DrawableRes resource);
Show Avatar	used to toggle visibility for avatar	.showAvatar(false);
Hide Timestamp	used to toggle visibility for of timestamp	.hideTimestamp(false);
Set TimeStampAlignment	used to set receipt’s time stamp alignment .It can be either top or bottom	.setTimeStampAlignment(UIKitConstants.TimeStampAlignment);
Set newMessageIndicatorText	used to set new message indicator text	.newMessageIndicatorText("Your_CUSTOM_TEXT");
Toggle scrollToBottomOnNewMessage	should scroll to bottom on new message? , by default false	.scrollToBottomOnNewMessage(true);
Toggle scrollToBottomOnNewMessage	should scroll to bottom on new message? , by default false	.scrollToBottomOnNewMessage(true);
Hide Receipt	Used to control visibility of read receipts without disabling the functionality of marking messages as read and delivered.	.hideReceipt(false);
Disable Mentions	Sets whether mentions in text should be disabled. Processes the text formatters If there are text formatters available and the disableMentions flag is set to true, it removes any formatters that are instances of CometChatMentionsFormatter.	.setDisableMentions(true);
Disable Reactions	Sets A boolean value indicating whether to disable reactions.Pass true to disable reactions, false to enable them.	.disableReactions(true);
Add Reaction Icon	Sets The resource ID to be set for the add reaction icon.This ID refers to the drawable resource representing the icon.	.setAddReactionIcon(R.drawable.your_icon);
Hide Add Reactions Icon	Sets A boolean value indicating whether to hide the add reactions icon. Pass true to hide the icon, false to show it.	.hideAddReactionsIcon(true);
Set Quick Reactions	The list of quick reactions to be set.This list will replace the predefined set of reactions	.setQuickReactions(Arrays.asList("👻","😈","🙀","🤡","❤️");

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Advance

For advanced-level customization, you can set custom views to the component. This lets you tailor each aspect of the component to fit your exact needs and application aesthetics. You can create and define your views, layouts, and UI elements and then incorporate those into the component.

SetTemplate

CometChatMessageTemplate is a pre-defined structure for creating message views that can be used as a starting point or blueprint for creating message views often known as message bubbles. For more information, you can refer to CometChatMessageTemplate.

You can set message Templates to MessageList by using the following code snippet

Java

List<CometChatMessageTemplate> messageTemplateList = new ArrayList<>();
messageTemplateList.add(CometChatUIKit.getDataSource().getTextTemplate());
messageTemplateList.add(CometChatUIKit.getDataSource().getImageTemplate());
messageList.setTemplates(messageTemplateList);

Kotlin

val messageTemplateList = ArrayList<CometChatMessageTemplate>().apply {
    add(CometChatUIKit.dataSource.textTemplate)
    add(CometChatUIKit.dataSource.imageTemplate)
}
messageList.templates = messageTemplateList

Set DateSeparatorPattern

You can modify the date pattern of the message list date separator to your requirement using setDateSeparatorPattern(). This method accepts a function with a return type String. Inside the function, you can create your own pattern and return it as a String.

Java

messageList.setDateSeparatorPattern()

Kotlin

messageList.setDateSeparatorPattern()

Example

Java

messageList.setDateSeparatorPattern(baseMessage -> {
        SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("hh:mm MM/yyyy");
        return sdf.format(new Date(baseMessage.getUpdatedAt()));
    });

Kotlin

    messageList.datePattern = { baseMessage ->
    val sdf = setDateSeparatorPattern("hh:mm MM/yyyy")
    sdf.format(Date(baseMessage.updatedAt))
}

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SetDatePattern

You can modify the date pattern to your requirement using .setDatePattern. This method accepts a function with a return type String. Inside the function, you can create your own pattern and return it as a String.

Java

messageList.setDatePattern()

Kotlin

messageList.setDatePattern()

Example

Java

messageList.setDatePattern(baseMessage -> {
        SimpleDateFormat sdf = new SimpleDateFormat("hh:mm");
        return sdf.format(new Date(baseMessage.getUpdatedAt()));
    });

Kotlin

    messageList.datePattern = { baseMessage ->
    val sdf = SimpleDateFormat("hh:mm")
    sdf.format(Date(baseMessage.updatedAt))
}

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SetErrorStateView

You can set a custom ErrorStateView using setEmptyStateView to match the error view of your app.

Java

messageList.setErrorStateView();

Kotlin

messageList.setErrorStateView();

Example

We have added an error view to error_state_view_layout.xml. You can choose any view you prefer. This view should be inflated and passed to the setErrorStateView() method.

error_state_view_layout.xml

   <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>

<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
   android:layout_width="match_parent"
   android:layout_height="match_parent">

   <ImageView
       android:id="@+id/img_error"
       android:layout_width="100dp"
       android:layout_height="100dp"
       android:src="@drawable/ic_error"
       android:layout_centerInParent="true"
       />
   <TextView
       android:layout_width="wrap_content"
       android:layout_height="wrap_content"
       android:text="Something Went Wrong"
       android:textSize="30sp"
       android:layout_below="@+id/img_error"
       android:layout_marginTop="50dp"
       android:layout_centerHorizontal="true"
       />

</RelativeLayout>

Java

YourActivity.java

messageList.setErrorStateView(R.layout.error_state_view_layout);

Kotlin

messageList.setErrorStateView(R.layout.error_state_view_layout);

SetEmptyStateView

The setEmptyStateView() function provides the ability to set a custom empty state view in your app. An empty state view is displayed when there are no messages for a particular user.

Java

messageList.setEmptyStateView();

Kotlin

messageList.setEmptyStateView()

Example

You have to create a custom layout named empty_view_layout.xml, you can set it as the empty state view by passing it as a parameter to the setEmptyStateView() function.

empty_view_layout.xml

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<RelativeLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent"
    android:layout_gravity="center_vertical"
    >

    <TextView
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:text="Start new conversation."
        android:layout_centerInParent="true"
        android:textSize="20sp"
        android:textStyle="bold"
        android:textColor="@color/light_grey"
        />

</RelativeLayout>

Java

messageList.setEmptyStateView(R.layout.empty_view_layout);

Kotlin

messageList.setEmptyStateView(R.layout.empty_view_layout)

SetLoadingStateView

The setLoadingStateView function allows you to set a custom loading view in your app. This feature enables you to maintain a consistent look and feel throughout your application,

Java

messageList.setLoadingStateView();

Kotlin

messageList.setLoadingStateView()

Example

We have added a ContentLoadingProgressBar to loading_view_layout.xml. You can choose any view you prefer. This view should be inflated and passed to the setLoadingStateView() method.

loading_view_layout.xml

    <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
    <FrameLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
        android:layout_width="match_parent"
        android:layout_height="match_parent"
        android:layout_gravity="center_vertical"
        >
        <androidx.core.widget.ContentLoadingProgressBar
            android:layout_width="wrap_content"
            android:layout_height="wrap_content"
            style="?android:attr/progressBarStyleLarge"
            android:layout_gravity="center_horizontal"
            />
    </FrameLayout>

Java

YourActivity.java

messageList.setLoadingStateView(R.layout.loading_view_layout);

Kotlin

messageList.setLoadingStateView(R.layout.loading_view_layout)

SetTextFormatters

Assigns the list of text formatters. If the provided list is not null, it sets the list. Otherwise, it assigns the default text formatters retrieved from the data source. To configure the existing Mentions look and feel check out MentionsFormatter Guide

Example

Java

// Initialize CometChatMentionsFormatter
CometChatMentionsFormatter mentionFormatter = new CometChatMentionsFormatter(context);

//set style to customize bubble mention text
mentionFormatter.setRightBubbleMentionTextStyle(new MentionTextStyle()
            .setLoggedInUserTextStyle(Typeface.defaultFromStyle(Typeface.BOLD))
            .setTextColor(Color.parseColor("#000000")));

mentionFormatter.setLeftBubbleMentionTextStyle(new MentionTextStyle()
            .setLoggedInUserTextStyle(Typeface.defaultFromStyle(Typeface.BOLD))
            .setTextColor(Color.parseColor("#000000")));

// This can be passed as an array of formatter in CometChatMessageList by using setTextFormatters method.
List<CometChatTextFormatter> textFormatters = new ArrayList<>();
textFormatters.add(mentionFormatter);
messageList.setTextFormatters(textFormatters);

Kotlin

// Initialize CometChatMentionsFormatter
val mentionFormatter = CometChatMentionsFormatter(context)

//set style to customize bubble mention text
 val mentionFormatter = CometChatMentionsFormatter(context)
    mentionFormatter.rightBubbleMentionTextStyle = MentionTextStyle()
        .setLoggedInUserTextStyle(Typeface.defaultFromStyle(Typeface.BOLD))
        .setTextColor(Color.parseColor("#000000"))

    mentionFormatter.leftBubbleMentionTextStyle = MentionTextStyle()
        .setLoggedInUserTextStyle(Typeface.defaultFromStyle(Typeface.BOLD))
        .setTextColor(Color.parseColor("#000000"))

// This can be passed as an array of formatter in CometChatMessageList by using setTextFormatters method.
val textFormatters: MutableList<CometChatTextFormatter> = ArrayList()
textFormatters.add(mentionFormatter)
messageList.setTextFormatters(textFormatters)

Configuration

Configurations offer the ability to customize the properties of each component within a Composite Component.

MessageInformation

From the MessageList, you can navigate to the MesssageInformation component as shown in the image.

If you wish to modify the properties of the MesssageInformation Component, you can use the MessageInformationConfiguration object.

Java

 MessageInformationConfiguration configuration = new MessageInformationConfiguration();
 messageList.setMessageInformationConfiguration(configuration);

Kotlin

val configuration = MessageInformationConfiguration()
messageList.messageInformationConfiguration = configuration

The MessageInformationConfiguration indeed provides access to all the Action, Filters, Styles, Functionality, and Advanced properties of the MesssageInformation component.

Please note that the properties marked with the 🛑 symbol are not accessible within the Configuration Object.

Example

In this example, we are disabling the back button and styling a few properties of the MesssageInformation component using MessageInformationConfiguration.

MessageInformationStyle messageInformationStyle = new MessageInformationStyle();
messageInformationStyle.setBackground(Color.LTGRAY);

MessageInformationConfiguration messageInformationConfiguration = new MessageInformationConfiguration();
messageInformationConfiguration.setShowBackButton(false);
messageInformationConfiguration.setTitle("Info");
messageInformationConfiguration.setStyle(messageInformationStyle);

messageList.setMessageInformationConfiguration(messageInformationConfiguration);

In the above code, the back button is disabled, the title is set to “Info”, and the background color is set to light gray. Finally, this configuration is applied to the message list.