Question

I’ve managed to get my thread running and stopping safely but what I would like to know is what is best for starting another thread? I know that you cannot restart a thread so I have to create a new one.

Here is what i mean:

1) First thread called automatically – acts like a simple counter, created using the ‘implements runnable’ method of threading

2) Have a button which interrupts this thread and stores the last value that that thread interacted before it was interrupted.

3) The next button should call a new thread and use that value as it’s starting point. Below is my first stab at the code:

@Override
public void run() 
{
    Log.v(  TAG,"Runnable" );

    if( isRunning )
    {
        Log.v(  TAG,"Runnable -> Inside While Loop" );

        counter.setText( " "+i );
        setCounter( i );

        handler.postDelayed( this, 1000 );
        i++;

    } else if( !isRunning )
    {
        if( Thread.currentThread().isAlive() )
        {
            Thread.currentThread().interrupt();
            Log.v( "Current Thread:", ""+Thread.currentThread().toString()      );
        } else {

            // Thread not alive
        }

    }
}

And the resume thread method:

// Cannot restart a thread - you have to create a new one!
public void resumeThrd()
{
    // isRunning = true;
    Log.v( "isRunning Value:", "TRUE" );

    // Create a new Thread to run
    newThrd = new Thread( this );
    newThrd.start();
}

So – how should i go about it? Should I revamp my original thread method to allow input and call it in my resume method? Is this safe or would the original thread still be active and creating a new one would just slow things down?

Finally how do i create the new thread properly?

Answer 1

Better is to create different Runnable and use Handler to manage all the Runnables. So, the best answer will be to use Handler to manage your thread.

Handler handler = new Handler();
handler.postDelayed(runnable, 1000);

Runnable runnable = new Runnable() {

        @Override
        public void run() {
            Log.d("runnable started", "inside run");
            handler.removeCallbacks(runnable);
            handler.postDelayed(runnable, 1000);
        }
    };

In your case to call the Runnable again you need to fire handler.postDelayed(runnable, 1000); and to stop the Runnable on the Button Click call handler.removeCallbacks(runnable);