Creating a Popover in iOS Using Swift

How to Create a Popover in iOS Using Swift

Creating a popover in iOS with Swift is an easy and intuitive way to give your users intuitive ways to interact with the UI. Popovers are used to display contextual menus, settings and other relevant information on the screen. With Swift, developers can use the UIPopoverController class to quickly create and design popovers that look great on any Apple device.

Step 1: Set up the Popover View Controller

The first step in creating a popover in Swift is to set up the View Controller class that will display the content. To do this, create a new Cocoa Touch Class subclassed from UIViewController, and then assign it as the view controller for the popover. This new view controller should have a clear, self-contained purpose: it should only display the content for the popover and nothing else.

Step 2: Add the Popover Properties

Then, add four properties at the top of the view controller class: A popoverPresentationController, a title label, a navigation controller, and a content size. These properties will be used to control how the popover looks and behaves when it is displayed. The title label is for the main heading of the popover, while the navigation controller is used to manage the navigation stack (for example, if you want to add buttons or other interactivity).Finally, the content size determines the size of the popover, which should be set to fit the content inside the popover.

Step 3: Design the UI

Next, it’s time to design the UI for the popover. This part is completely up to the developer, depending on their preferences and the purpose of the popover. However, it’s best practice to keep the UI simple and minimalist, as complex UIs can be overwhelming and difficult to read.

Step 4: Present the Popover

When the UI is ready, the next step is to present the popover. This is done using the presentPopover() method of the UIPopoverPresentationController class. This method takes in three parameters: the view controller containing the popover, the source view (the view from which the popover should appear), and a boolean parameter that determines whether the popover should animate when it is displayed. Once the popover is presented, it should appear immediately on the screen.

Step 5: Dismiss the Popover

Finally, when the user is done interacting with the popover, they should have an option to dismiss it. This can be done using the dismissPopover() method of the UIPopoverPresentationController class. This method doesn’t take any parameters and should be called whenever the user taps outside of the popover or presses the back button. After the dismissPopover() method has been called, the popover will be removed from the screen.

Creating a popover with Swift is a quick and straightforward process. With the UIPopoverPresentationController class, developers can design and present popovers with minimal effort. All that’s left is to customize the UI and add some interactivity, and your popover is good to go!