How to retrieve values from settings.bundle in Objective-c/Swift?

Question

I have created a project that set and retrieve values from settings.bundle. I have also set some defaults values in settings.bundle file. Now the problem is when I retrieve values as

NSUserDefaults *defaults = [NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults];
loginName.text = [defaults objectForKey:@"login_name"];

for the first time it shows null, but the values get set in iPhone application settings. If I change the values or set it manually, then values are retrieved properly.

Help me out

Answer 1

Although you define the defaults settings, they are not really stored as a value. They are stored as default. If you try to read it, the value is null. Default setting is another property as value is. But it doesnt mean that will write the default value as a default.

What I do is, first, check if some setting,(that I'm sure that should have a value) has anything stored on it. If it doesn't have anything then I write all the defaults.

Here is an example.

on AppDelegate.m I check if email_notificaciones_preference has a value, if not, I write ALL default settings to each setting.

- (BOOL)application:(UIApplication *)application didFinishLaunchingWithOptions:(NSDictionary *)launchOptions
    NSUserDefaults * standardUserDefaults = [NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults];
    NSString * email_notificaciones_preference = [standardUserDefaults objectForKey:@"email_notificaciones_preference"];
    if (!email_notificaciones_preference) {
        [self registerDefaultsFromSettingsBundle];
    }

}

This function is what I use to write defaults to each element.

#pragma NSUserDefaults
- (void)registerDefaultsFromSettingsBundle {
    // this function writes default settings as settings
    NSString *settingsBundle = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:@"Settings" ofType:@"bundle"];
    if(!settingsBundle) {
        NSLog(@"Could not find Settings.bundle");
        return;
    }

    NSDictionary *settings = [NSDictionary dictionaryWithContentsOfFile:[settingsBundle stringByAppendingPathComponent:@"Root.plist"]];
    NSArray *preferences = [settings objectForKey:@"PreferenceSpecifiers"];

    NSMutableDictionary *defaultsToRegister = [[NSMutableDictionary alloc] initWithCapacity:[preferences count]];
    for(NSDictionary *prefSpecification in preferences) {
        NSString *key = [prefSpecification objectForKey:@"Key"];
        if(key) {
            [defaultsToRegister setObject:[prefSpecification objectForKey:@"DefaultValue"] forKey:key];
            NSLog(@"writing as default %@ to the key %@",[prefSpecification objectForKey:@"DefaultValue"],key);
        }
    }

    [[NSUserDefaults standardUserDefaults] registerDefaults:defaultsToRegister];

}

Hope that helps.