android setVisibility does not display if initially set to invisble

Question

I have a glsurface occupying the full screen. At the click of a button I want another layout to appear (settings type of thing). If I start with the overlay being visible, I can make it invisible and then visible again with no problem. But if I start with it invisible, I cannot make it ever visible again. Code follows:

<?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.opengl.GLSurfaceView
    android:id="@+id/glPlaySurface"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent" >
</android.opengl.GLSurfaceView>

<RadioGroup
    android:id="@+id/radioGroup1"
    android:layout_width="wrap_content"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
    android:layout_alignParentLeft="true"
    android:orientation="horizontal" >

    <RadioButton
        android:id="@+id/btnRotate"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginLeft="10dp"
        android:checked="true"
        android:text="R"
        android:textColor="#000" />

    <RadioButton
        android:id="@+id/btnPan"
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginLeft="15dp"
        android:text="P"
        android:textColor="#000" />
</RadioGroup>

<Button
    android:id="@+id/btnLights"
    android:layout_width="wrap_content"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
    android:layout_marginLeft="15dp"
    android:layout_toRightOf="@+id/radioGroup1"
    android:text="Lights" />

<RelativeLayout
    xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:id="@+id/layoutLights"
    android:layout_width="100dp"
    android:layout_height="100dp"
    android:visibility="visible" <--- Does not work if set to invisible
    android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
    android:layout_alignParentRight="true"

    android:background="#fff" >

    <Button
    android:id="@+id/btnLightsOK"
    android:layout_width="wrap_content"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
    android:layout_alignParentLeft="true"
    android:layout_marginLeft="15dp"
    android:text="OK" />

    <Button
    android:id="@+id/btnLights"
    android:layout_width="wrap_content"
    android:layout_height="wrap_content"
    android:layout_alignParentBottom="true"
    android:layout_alignParentLeft="true"
    android:layout_marginLeft="15dp"
    android:text="OK" />

</RelativeLayout>

</RelativeLayout>


private OnClickListener mOnLightsClick = new OnClickListener() {
    public void onClick(View arg0) {
        if(mLayoutLights.getVisibility() == View.VISIBLE) {
            mLayoutLights.setVisibility(View.INVISIBLE);
        }
        else {
            mLayoutLights.setVisibility(View.VISIBLE);
        }
    }
};

Answer 1

Had similar error but it was due to my silly mistake of not using the UiThread.

Activity act = (Activity)context;
act.runOnUiThread(new Runnable(){
@Override
public void run() {
    mLayoutLights.setVisibility(View.VISIBLE);  
} });