Understanding Swipe Down Gesture on MPMoviePlayerViewController

In this article, we will delve into the intricacies of implementing a swipe down gesture in an iOS application using the MPMoviePlayerViewController. This controller is used to play movies and TV shows within the app. However, when it comes to detecting gestures, things can get complex due to its internal workings.

Introduction

The MPMoviePlayerViewController is designed for playing media content such as videos and audio files. It’s a convenient way to display multimedia content without having to create your own video player view hierarchy. But how do we incorporate our own gestures with this controller? In this article, we’ll explore the process of implementing a swipe down gesture on MPMoviePlayerViewController.

Understanding MPMoviePlayerViewController

Before we dive into the code, let’s take a look at what makes MPMoviePlayerViewController tick. When you create an instance of MPMoviePlayerViewController, it sets up its own internal player view hierarchy to display your media content. This includes creating a UIView subclass called MPMoviePlayerInternalBufferingView, which is responsible for rendering the video buffer.

Creating a Swipe Down Gesture

To create a swipe down gesture, we’ll use the UISwipeGestureRecognizer. We need to create an instance of this recognizer and set its target action. In our case, the target will be our view controller (or any other object that can detect gestures), and the action will be triggered when the swipe gesture occurs.

### Creating a Swipe Down Gesture Recognizer

Firstly, we need to import the `UIKit` framework and create an instance of `UISwipeGestureRecognizer`.

```swift
import UIKit

let swipe = UISwipeGestureRecognizer(target: self, action: #selector(swiped))
swipe.direction = .down // Set the direction of the swipe gesture recognizer

Adding Gesture Recognizer to the View

We also need to add the gesture recognizer to our view. We can do this by using the addGestureRecognizer method on our UIView.

override func viewDidLoad() {
    super.viewDidLoad()
    
    // Create and add the swipe gesture recognizer to the view
    
    swipe = UISwipeGestureRecognizer(target: self, action: #selector(swiped))
    swipe.direction = .down
    [self.view addGestureRecognizer:swipe]
}

The Problem with MPMoviePlayerViewController

However, there’s a catch when it comes to using MPMoviePlayerViewController with our swipe gesture. We’ve set the direction of our swipe recognizer to .down, but we need to remember that this is not the direction in which the video will be controlled.

When you play a movie using MPMoviePlayerViewController, it controls the video playback based on its internal player view hierarchy, which includes the MPMoviePlayerInternalBufferingView. This view takes over control when a swipe gesture occurs and doesn’t respond to our swipe recognizer anymore.

Solution

To solve this problem, we need to create an outlet for our MPMoviePlayerViewController instance. This will allow us to detect gestures while playing media content with MPMoviePlayerViewController.

### Creating an Outlet for MPMoviePlayerViewController

Firstly, we need to import the `AVFoundation` framework and create an instance of `MPMoviePlayerViewController`. We also need to create an outlet for our player view controller.

```swift
import AVFoundation

class ViewController: UIViewController {
    @IBOutlet weak var playerView: MPMoviePlayerViewController!
    
    override func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()
        
        // Create and add the swipe gesture recognizer to the view
        
        let swipe = UISwipeGestureRecognizer(target: self, action: #selector(swiped))
        swipe.direction = .down
        [self.view addGestureRecognizer:swipe]
    }
    
    @objc func swiped(_ sender: UISwipeGestureRecognizer) {
        NSLog(@"SLIDE DOWN")
        
        // Play a movie
        
        let path = URL(fileURLWithPath: "path/to/movie.mp4")
        playerView?.loadMovie(atURL: path, options: nil)
        playerView?.moviePlayer.scalingMode = .fill
        playerView?.moviePlayer.controlStyle = .none
        [[NSNotificationCenter defaultCenter] addObserver(self, selector: #selector(movieFinishedPlaying(_:)), name: MPMoviePlayerPlaybackDidFinishNotification, object: playerView?.moviePlayer]
        
        playerView?.moviePlayer.repeatMode = .noRepeat
        
    }
    
    @objc func movieFinishedPlaying(_ notification: Notification) {
        NSLog("Movie finished playing")
    }
}

Conclusion

In conclusion, implementing a swipe down gesture on MPMoviePlayerViewController requires some extra steps and understanding of how the controller works internally. By creating an outlet for our player view controller and adding the swipe gesture recognizer to our view, we can detect gestures while playing media content with this controller. Remember that when you play a movie using MPMoviePlayerViewController, it controls the video playback based on its internal player view hierarchy, which takes over control when a swipe gesture occurs.

Additional Information

• The UISTrickView is a more advanced UI component than the UISwipeGestureRecognizer. It allows you to detect gestures with higher precision and accuracy.
• The UIGestureRecognizerDelegate protocol defines methods for managing gesture recognizers. By conforming to this protocol, you can customize your gesture recognizer’s behavior.
• The AVFoundation framework provides classes for working with audio and video content on iOS devices. It includes the MPMoviePlayerViewController class.

Troubleshooting

• If your swipe gesture is not detected, ensure that you’ve added the gesture recognizer to your view correctly.
• Make sure that your outlet for the player view controller is correctly connected in your storyboard or XIB file.
• Verify that your video playback settings are correct. For example, make sure that you’re playing a valid media file and that its path is correctly set.

Next Steps

Now that we’ve covered implementing a swipe down gesture on MPMoviePlayerViewController, here are some next steps to consider:

• Experiment with different types of gestures using the UISwipeGestureRecognizer or other gesture recognizers.
• Explore the AVFoundation framework for working with audio and video content on iOS devices.
• Learn more about the UIGestureRecognizerDelegate protocol and how it can be used to customize your gesture recognizer’s behavior.

Last modified on 2023-07-27