Chapter 8Content Providers
The previous chapter explains the various ways to persist data—using shared preferences, files, as well as SQLite databases. Although using the database approach is the recommended way to save structured and complex data, sharing data is a challenge because the database is accessible to only the package that created it.
This chapter explains Android's way of sharing data through the use of content providers. You find out how to use the built-in content providers, as well as implement your own content providers to share data across packages.
SHARING DATA IN ANDROID
In Android, using a content provider is the recommended way to share data across packages. Think of a content provider as a data store. How it stores its data is not relevant to the application using it. However, the way in which packages can access the data stored in it using a consistent programming interface is important. A content provider behaves very much like a database—you can query it, edit its content, and add or delete content. However, unlike a database, a content provider ...
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