How to run an infinite loop in Android without freezing the UI?

Question

I'm creating and android program which needs to to continuously keep sending data over the bluetooth now I use something like this:

for(;;)
{
//send message
}

though this works it freezes my UI and app how can I implement the same without freezing my UI?

I am sure that the app is sending the data as I monitor the data.

Answer 1

Put your loop in an AsyncTask, Service with separate Thread or just in another Thread beside your Activity. Never do heavy work, infinte loops, or blocking calls in your main (UI) Thread.

Answer 2

If you are using kotlin then you can use coroutines.

implementation "org.jetbrains.kotlinx:kotlinx-coroutines-core:1.3.7"
implementation "org.jetbrains.kotlinx:kotlinx-coroutines-android:1.3.4"

initialize a job variable job:Job globally then do:

job = 
GlobalScope.launch(Dispatchers.Default) {
    while (job.isActive) {
        //do whatever you want
    }
}

Do job.cancel() when you want your loop to stop